Voters are heading to the polls Thursday in Sri Lanka's presidential election.<br/> <br />Some 15 million people are eligible to cast ballots across the country.<br/> <br />President Mahinda Rajapaksa is seeking a third term. He won 58 percent of the vote in the last election, surfing a wave of popularity after 2009 defeat of Tamil Tiger separatists who had waged a 26-year war against the government.<br/> <br />He's facing an unexpected challenge from his former health minister Mithripala Sirisena, who crossed to the other side to become the opposition's candidate in November, triggering a flood of defections from the government.<br/> <br />While there have been no reliable opinion polls ahead of the vote, many believe Sirisena will benefit from a popular yearning for change after a decade under Rajapaksa.
