Mahinda Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka's president, was re-elected by a wide amrgin, election officials here said Wednesday, defeating the newly retired army general who had tried to lay claim to Mr. Rajapaksa's biggest political victory, the defeat of the Tamil Tiger insurgency. [...]

[E]lection observers and advocacy groups have questioned the fundamental fairness of the campaign, accusing Mr. Rajapaksa of using state resources to run his campaign. [...]

[...] The election results illustrate the still-yawning ethnic and religious divides that plunged Sri Lanka into civil war in the first place, and underscore the difficulties Mr. Rajapaksa will face in trying to reconcile the country after 26 years of conflict. [...]