Next Myanmar general election

Next Myanmar general election
← 2020 (annulled) TBD
315 of the 440 seats in the Pyithu Hluttaw
221 seats needed for a majority
161 of the 224 seats in the Amyotha Hluttaw
113 seats needed for a majority
 
Leader Khin Yi
Party USDP
Leader since 5 October 2022
Last election 26 R / 7 N
Incumbent President

Min Aung Hlaing (acting)
Military



Politics of Myanmar
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Government
Legislature (dissolved)
Judiciary
Recent elections
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Myanmar's military government plans to hold a general election for elected seats in the Amyotha Hluttaw and the Pyithu Hluttaw of the Assembly of the Union, currently dissolved, at an unspecified time in the future. The planned election would be the first after the 2021 military coup d'état. Though military ruler Min Aung Hlaing initially promised to hold the election by August 2023, the military has since indefinitely delayed the election in the face of increasing violence.[1][2][3][4]

Since the coup, the military has ruled the country under a state of emergency, initially declared by Acting President Myint Swe for one year and extended six times by six-month periods, currently set to expire on 1 February 2025.[5][6][7] The constitution requires elections be held within six months of the end of the state of emergency. The military is expected to seek legitimacy for its extended rule through the election, which is expected to be neither free nor fair.[8][9][10][11][12] A census is being conducted in October 2024 in anticipation of a possible 2025 election date.

In January 2023, the military enacted a new electoral law tightening the requirements for party registration, banning the participation of people convicted of a crime including Aung San Suu Kyi and Win Myint, and switching from a first-past-the-post to a proportional system. Analysts see the changes as intended to improve the electoral performance of the military proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party, which performed poorly in the free and fair 2020 election. Most opposition to the USDP will be seriously weakened under the new rules. Added to the previously existing 25% reserved seats to the military, the switch to proportional representation would allow it to govern with just over a third of the popular vote.[13][14][15] The National League for Democracy, which was removed from power in the coup, announced in February 2023 that it would not register under the new law, and was declared dissolved by the election commission the following month.[16][17] The second-largest opposition party, the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy, similarly announced it would not participate in the election.[18][19]

  1. ^ "Myanmar junta promises elections by 2023". Deutsche Welle. 1 August 2021. Archived from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  2. ^ "Min Aung Hlaing says no Myanmar elections until 2023". Al Jazeera. 1 Aug 2021. Archived from the original on 30 December 2021. Retrieved 30 December 2021.
  3. ^ "Myanmar military rulers extend state of emergency by six months". Al Jazeera. 1 February 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
  4. ^ "Myanmar junta extends state of emergency, effectively delaying polls". Agence France-Presse. Yangon: France24. 1 February 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
  5. ^ Strangio, Sebastian (1 August 2023). "Myanmar Junta Extends State of Emergency for Fourth Time". The Diplomat. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  6. ^ "Myanmar military further extends state of emergency". Al Jazeera. 31 January 2024. Archived from the original on 31 January 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  7. ^ Rising, David (1 August 2024). "Myanmar's military regime extends state of emergency by 6 months as civil war rages". Associated Press. Bangkok, Thailand. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  8. ^ "A Road to Nowhere: The Myanmar Regime's Stage-managed Elections". Crisis Group. 2023-03-28. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  9. ^ "Myanmar military prepares for election in bid for legitimacy". Nikkei Asia. 23 July 2022. Archived from the original on 3 August 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  10. ^ Strangio, Sebastian (5 January 2023). "Myanmar's Military Junta Takes Step Toward Controversial Election". The Diplomat. Archived from the original on 28 January 2023. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  11. ^ "UN expert: Myanmar's pledge for clean polls 'preposterous'". Associated Press. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 23 June 2022. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  12. ^ "'No chance' Myanmar polls will be free and fair: US official". Agence France-Presse. France24. 11 June 2022. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  13. ^ "Myanmar military announces strict new election law ahead of polls". Al Jazeera. 27 January 2023. Archived from the original on 28 January 2023. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  14. ^ "Myanmar army set to cement rule with tough new election criteria". Reuters. 27 January 2022. Archived from the original on 28 January 2023. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  15. ^ "Myanmar: Political Parties Law Shackles Opposition". Human Rights Watch. 14 February 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference NLD registration was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Min Ye Kyaw; Rebecca Ratcliffe (28 March 2023). "Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party dissolved". The Guardian. Bangkok, Thailand. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
  18. ^ "Shan prominent party decides not to register for junta's election". Burma News International. Retrieved 2023-03-20.
  19. ^ "'We Agree the Law is Unfair': SNLD". The Irrawaddy. 1 February 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2023.