evidence: Political stalwart <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/asia/2022/07/20/ranil-wickremesinghe-is-new-president-of-sri-lanka/" target="_blank">Ranil Wickremesinghe</a> became <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/asia/2022/07/19/sri-lankas-instability-a-serious-concern-for-india/" target="_blank">Sri Lanka's</a> president on Wednesday, securing votes from 134 of 225 parliamentarians, despite his United National Party holding only one seat in the chamber. His election was a blow for many protesters at the secretariat and adjoining protest camp in the commercial capital Colombo, which has been the epicentre of nationwide demonstrations which ousted his predecessor <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/2022/07/13/sri-lanka-president-gotabaya-rajapaksa-flees-to-maldives-on-air-force-jet/" target="_blank">Gotabaya Rajapaksa</a>. Here's what you need to know about him. Mr Wickremesinghe is no stranger to <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/tags/sri-lanka/" target="_blank">Sri Lankan</a> politics. A lawyer by profession, he was first elected to the country's parliament in 1977. His constant reappearance on the political scene, despite multiple failures to be elected president, has led him being called the "eighth wonder of the world" by his fellow Sri Lankans. Mr Wickremesinghe was born into one of the country's most influential families on March 24, 1949. His uncle, Junius Jayewardene, served as the Indian Ocean island's president for 12 years until 1989. Jayewardene, who died in 1996, was the original architect of his nephew's entry into politics.