Myanmar began a second round of voting Sunday in its first general election since the military takeover five years ago, with polling expanding to additional townships that include areas affected by the civil war between the military government and its armed opponents.
Polling stations opened at 6 a.m. in 100 townships across the country, including parts of Sagaing, Magway, Mandalay, Bago and Tanintharyi regions, as well as Mon, Shan, Kachin, Kayah and Kayin states. Many of those areas have recently seen clashes or remain under heightened security, underscoring the risks surrounding the vote.
Attacks targeting polling stations and government buildings were reported in at least four of the 100 townships holding polls, and two administrative officials were killed, independent online media including Myanmar Now reported. Opposition organizations and ethnic armed groups had previously vowed to disrupt the electoral process.
The second-round vote is being held in three phases because of armed conflict. The first round took place Dec. 28 in 102 of Myanmar’s total 330 townships, and a final round is scheduled for Jan. 25, though 65 townships will not take part because of fighting.
Rights critics and international observers have said the polls are not free or fair. Tom Andrews, a special rapporteur working with the U.N. human rights office, urged the international community Thursday to reject what he called a “sham election,” saying the first round exposed coercion, violence and political exclusion. Andrews said: “You cannot have a free, fair or credible election when thousands of political prisoners are behind bars, credible opposition parties have been dissolved, journalists are muzzled, and fundamental freedoms are crushed.”
The Associated Press reported that the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners keeps tallies related to arrests and casualties linked to the conflict, and said more than 22,000 people are detained for political offenses and more than 7,600 civilians have been killed by security forces since 2021. Separately, the AP reported that an Election Protection Law imposes harsh penalties and restrictions for virtually all public criticism of the polls, and that authorities have charged more than 330 people under the new electoral law for leafleting or online activity over the past few months.
In Yangon and Mandalay, Myanmar’s two largest cities, voters cast ballots at high schools, government buildings and religious buildings. At more than 10 polling stations visited by Associated Press journalists, voter numbers ranged from about 150 at the busiest site to just a few at others, appearing lower than during the 2020 election when long lines were common.
The military government said there were more than 24 million eligible voters, about 35% fewer than in 2020. It called the turnout a success, saying ballots were cast by more than 6 million people, about 52% of more than 11 million eligible voters in the election’s first phase, and Myo Aung, a chief minister of the Mandalay region, said more people turned out Sunday than in the first phase.
Among voters, Maung Maung Naing, who voted in Mandalay’s Mahar Aung Myay township, said he wanted a government that will benefit the people, adding: “I only like a government that can make everything better for livelihoods and social welfare.” In Yangon’s Latha township, independent candidate Sandar Min said she decided to contest despite criticism because she wants to work with the government for the good of the country. After voting, she said, “We want the country to be nonviolent. We do not accept violence as part of the change of the country,” and added, “We care deeply about the people of this country.”
Election rules and political power-sharing are also at the center of the vote. Myanmar has a two-house national legislature totaling 664 seats, and the party with a combined parliamentary majority can select the new president, who can name a Cabinet and form a new government. Under the constitution, the military automatically receives 25% of seats in each house.
Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, the military government’s spokesperson, told journalists on Sunday that the two houses of parliament will be convened in March and that the new government will take up its duties in April. With more than 4,800 candidates from 57 parties competing for seats in national and regional legislatures, only six parties are competing nationwide, and the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, or USDP, is positioned strongly following the first phase.
The first phase left the USDP dominant in the lower house, winning nearly 90% of the contested seats there, and it also won a majority of seats in regional legislatures. The AP reported that Aung San Suu Kyi, 80, and her party are not participating: she is serving a 27-year prison term on charges widely viewed as spurious and politically motivated, and the National League for Democracy was dissolved in 2023 after refusing to register under new military rules. Other parties, the AP said, also refused to register or declined to run under conditions they deem unfair, while opposition groups have called for a voter boycott.