The Irrawaddy

 

Myanmar’s military-appointed Election Commission has confirmed that nine political parties will contest seats nationwide in the upcoming general election, despite widespread conflict and international condemnation. The remaining 52 registered parties will run only in regional or state constituencies.

 

Among the nationwide contenders are the junta-aligned Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), the National Unity Party (NUP), and the Democratic Party of National Politics (DNP)—all led by former generals. The USDP, chaired by ex-Brigadier General Khin Yi, played a key role in supporting the 2021 coup and is actively recruiting in junta-controlled areas.

 

Other parties include the People’s Pioneer Party (PPP), led by Thet Thet Khine, a former NLD lawmaker now serving as a minister under the junta; the National Democratic Force (NDF), headed by Khin Maung Swe, a former member of the junta’s State Administration Council; and the People’s Party, led by Ko Ko Gyi, a former pro-democracy activist who has since endorsed the military’s electoral roadmap.

 

Also contesting nationwide are the Myanmar Farmers Development Party (MFDP), the Shan and Ethnic Democratic Party (SEDP), and the Women’s Party (Mon). The SEDP’s chair, Sai Ai Pao, received a state honour from coup leader Min Aung Hlaing.

 

The Commission claims voting will take place in all 330 townships, though 144 are under resistance control and 79 face active conflict. The junta has launched military operations to retake territory ahead of the vote, including airstrikes and ground offensives in contested areas.

 

Resistance groups and international watchdogs have denounced the planned election as illegitimate, warning it serves only to entrench military rule. Ethnic armed organisations have threatened to disrupt the process, and rights groups have called for global rejection of the results.

 

With the National League for Democracy dissolved and its leaders imprisoned or exiled, the upcoming vote is shaping up as a tightly managed affair. The participation of nine nationwide parties—many with ties to the military—raises serious questions about the credibility of Myanmar’s electoral future.

 

 

-2025-09-04

On 9/4/2025 at 9:44 AM, geovalin said:

upcoming general election

Unlike Thailand that seems to avoid general elections since 2013 to create new governments.

On 9/4/2025 at 9:44 AM, geovalin said:

The participation of nine nationwide parties—many with ties to the military

 

IMO only parties that are pro - Tatmadaw will be able to partake in the General Election which should be boycotted by all freedom and democracy seeking citizens.