Sri Lankans are voting in a parliamentary election that's key for their new, Marxist-leaning president to consolidate his party’s power and follow through on promises of economic recovery.

Sri Lankans began voting on Thursday in a snap election to decide if the Indian Ocean island will give its new leftist president greater strength to help the poor as it recovers from a financial meltdown.

Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is looking to consolidate his party’s power in Thursday’s parliamentary election to help him implement his election pledges to solve the country’s economic woes and foster good governance.