Myanmar’s military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party has taken a decisive lead in the first phase of a controversial general election, according to partial official results. The vote marks the country’s first national election since the 2021 military coup.
Voting took place on 28 December in 102 of Myanmar’s 330 townships, amid ongoing civil war and international condemnation. Further phases are scheduled for 11 January and 25 January.
Partial results released by the Union Election Commission showed the Union Solidarity and Development Party, led by retired generals and widely viewed as a proxy for the military, winning by a wide margin despite reports of low enthusiasm among voters.
The party secured 38 of 40 declared seats in the Pyithu Hluttaw lower house. The Shan Nationalities Democratic Party, also known as the White Tiger Party, and the Mon Unity Party each won one seat. In regional and state assemblies, the military-backed party claimed 14 of 15 tallied seats, with one seat going to the Akha National Development Party. One upper house seat was declared for the Wa National Party.
The junta reported voter turnout of 52%, or more than six million voters, and hailed the election as a success. Junta spokesperson Zaw Min Tun said that “even in developed democratic nations, there are situations where voter turnout does not exceed 50 per cent”, calling it a “source of pride”.
Turnout was significantly lower than in previous polls. According to the US-based International Foundation for Electoral Systems, turnout reached about 70% in the 2015 and 2020 elections.
The election has been widely condemned by the United Nations, Western governments, and human rights groups, who have described it as a sham. Major opposition parties were banned from participating, and public criticism of the process has been criminalised. Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate who led the National League for Democracy to a landslide victory in 2020, remains detained at age 80. Her party has been dissolved.
In Yangon, the country’s largest city, daily life appears outwardly calm, with busy streets and open markets. Beneath the surface, residents describe an atmosphere of fear that has settled in since the coup crushed mass pro-democracy protests nearly five years ago.
“We are always living in fear,” says a commuter who stopped briefly to speak. “[Before the coup] we had such hope for the future. We were not at all afraid of our government. Now all that has changed.” She added, “We cannot speak our voices to others freely.” Like others interviewed, she declined to give her name.
After the coup on 1 February 2021, hundreds of thousands took to the streets demanding the restoration of democracy. Security forces responded with lethal force, killing more than 400 people by the end of March. Tens of thousands have since been arrested.
Many activists fled to rural areas, forming armed resistance groups that later joined long-established ethnic militias. By late 2023, fighting had spread across roughly two-thirds of the country.
Although Yangon is largely removed from daily combat, anxiety remains pervasive. “Yangon isn’t like the old Yangon any more,” says an online influencer using the pseudonym Hnin Sandar. “Yangon isn’t a happy place like before.” She said friends warn her not to discuss politics even in taxis or on buses. “I feel like I’m living in jail.”
Mandatory conscription was introduced in 2024 after the military lost large areas of territory. Young men with the means to leave the country have done so. Others have been forcibly taken. Aung Moe, a Yangon resident, said his friend disappeared after being pulled into a taxi. “[They] dragged him inside the car, put a blindfold on him and they took his phone, and made him call his family and ask for a ransom.” The family could not pay the USD$1,200 demand. He has not been seen since.
Economic hardship has deepened alongside repression. Inflation has surged following the collapse of Myanmar’s currency, the kyat, which has lost 80% of its value since the coup. Since 2020, Myanmar’s GDP has contracted by 9%, according to the UN, reversing gains made during a decade of political opening. The World Bank estimates the poverty rate fell from 48.2% in 2005 to 24.8% in 2017, a trend that has since reversed.
Foreign businesses have withdrawn, tourism has collapsed, and once-busy markets now sit quiet. “Before the coup, we were rocketing our hopes and dreams,” says Hnin Sandar. “But after the coup, we are doing what we need to survive.”
Despite the military’s insistence that the election will be free and fair, many voters expressed resignation rather than optimism. “They pretend, they want to show the world that they made an election, that they go back to democracy, but we all know the result,” said one young man who did not vote. “There is no competitor.”
About the Author
