Myanmar’s military government pressed ahead with a long-delayed general election on Sunday, holding the first round of voting amid a civil war, widespread displacement and an ongoing humanitarian crisis. It is the country’s first nationwide election in five years and the first since the army seized power in a 2021 coup that overthrew the elected civilian government.
The ruling junta has portrayed the vote as an opportunity for political and economic renewal in the impoverished Southeast Asian nation. Critics, however, say the election lacks credibility and is designed to provide a veneer of legitimacy to continued military rule.
Voters cast ballots at schools, government offices and religious buildings in Yangon, the commercial hub, Naypyitaw, the capital, and other locations, according to reports from the ground. Voting is being conducted in three phases, with Sunday’s first round taking place in 102 of Myanmar’s 330 townships. Further rounds are scheduled for January 11 and January 25, with final results expected later in January.
More than 4,800 candidates from 57 political parties are contesting seats in national and regional legislatures. Only six parties are competing nationwide with any realistic prospect of influence in parliament, reflecting the narrow political field under military oversight.
Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former civilian leader, is not participating. Now 80, she is serving a combined 27-year prison sentence on charges widely viewed by critics as politically motivated. Her party, the National League for Democracy, which won a landslide victory in the 2020 election, was dissolved in 2023 after refusing to register under new military-imposed rules.
Several other parties either declined to register or chose not to run, citing unfair conditions. Opposition groups and resistance movements have called for a boycott, arguing that the process offers no genuine political choice. An analyst from the Asian Network for Free Elections noted that 73 percent of voters in 2020 supported parties that no longer exist.
Security was visibly tightened ahead of the vote. Armed guards were stationed outside polling sites in Yangon, and military trucks patrolled major roads. Authorities also deployed electronic voting machines for the first time. Despite vows by opposition groups to disrupt the polls, no major incidents were reported during the opening phase.
The election has been strongly criticised by the United Nations, Western governments and human rights organisations, which say it is neither free nor fair. They argue that the exclusion of major political parties, restrictions on free expression and an atmosphere of intimidation undermine any claim to legitimacy. Critics contend that an expected victory for the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party would make any transition to civilian rule largely symbolic.
Some analysts say holding the election may nonetheless allow neighbouring countries such as China, India and Thailand to justify continued engagement with Myanmar’s generals on the grounds of stability. Western nations, by contrast, have maintained sanctions over the junta’s anti-democratic actions and its conduct in the conflict.
Since the coup, repression has made political mobilisation extremely difficult. According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, more than 22,000 people are currently detained for political reasons, and over 7,600 civilians have been killed by security forces.
Armed resistance emerged after the military used lethal force to crush peaceful protests in 2021, plunging the country into a protracted civil war that has displaced more than 3.6 million people, according to the United Nations. A recently enacted Election Protection Law has imposed harsh penalties and sweeping restrictions, effectively banning public criticism of the polls.
UN human rights chief Volker Türk has warned of intensified violence and intimidation, saying there are no conditions in Myanmar for freedom of expression or peaceful assembly. Against this backdrop, both supporters and opponents of the junta widely believe that real power will remain with Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, the army chief who led the 2021 takeover.
