Colombo  - The ruling party was poised to win elections being held Saturday in two of Sri Lanka's nine provinces in what was widely seen as a prelude to snap parliamentary polls this year.

The voting to select members of provincial councils was being held in the Central and North-Western provinces, where more than 3.4 million voters were registered to vote.

The ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA), led by President Mahinda Rajapaksa, heavily campaigned on the government's military achievements after troops captured almost all Tamil rebel-held areas in the northern and eastern parts of the country since launching an offensive in 2006.

The main opposition United National Party - led by former prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, the opposition leader in Parliament - focused on the cost of living while criticizing the ruling party for misusing military achievements for political gain.

The UPFA appeared to have the edge because of military successes that have seen the government regain control of the Eastern Province and nearly all of the North Province from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, which has been fighting for more than 25 years for an independent homeland for the Tamil ethnic minority in majority-Sinhalese Sri Lanka.

The two provincial elections were being held ahead of schedule and were due to be followed by three more provinces.

Similar elections were held in May and August in three other provinces, including the Eastern Province. Rajapaksa's party won all three elections.

The UPFA government's term ends in April 2010, but Rajapaksa was likely to call for parliamentary elections in the middle of this year to try to extend his government's tenure for another six years.

Voting began Saturday morning and is to continue until 4 pm (1030 GMT). Results were expected Saturday night. (dpa)