Sri Lanka’s acting leader to face two rivals in vote for president

Protesters shout slogans against Ranil Wickremesinghe (Eranga Jayawardena/AP)

Sri Lanka’s prime minister and acting president Ranil Wickremesinghe will face two rivals in a parliamentary vote on who will succeed the country’s ousted leader who fled the island last week.

Mr Wickremesinghe is backed by members of the fragmented ruling coalition but his candidacy is opposed by critics who say he is a holdover from the previous government that led the country into economic catastrophe.