The Burma (Myanmar) election leaves observers asking whether it can truly be called a legitimate election when opposition parties and much of the population are prohibited from participating.
Burma’s military junta held the first round of its 2025 election on December 28, marking the first vote since overthrowing the country’s democratically elected government in 2021. Participation was sharply limited, with only about one-third of eligible voters casting ballots. Voting took place only in areas under military control, effectively disenfranchising large segments of the population living in conflict zones that comprise roughly 70 percent of the country’s territory.
As voting began, the Union Election Commission announced that nine additional townships had been added to the list where voting could not take place due to ongoing armed conflict. The newly excluded areas included three townships in Chin State, two in Sagaing Division, and four in Rakhine State, bringing the total number of townships entirely excluded from elections to 65, up from 56.
The UEC also confirmed that Phases 1 and 2 could not be held in 51 village tracts in Karenni State, and that Phase 3 elections scheduled for January 25 would not take place in 10 village tracts in Pekhon Township. In total, 134 townships are now affected either fully or partially, setting a record for the highest number of areas where elections could not be conducted in Burma’s history.
The election is being held in three phases across 265 of 330 townships, with the second round on January 11 and third round on January 25. Final results are expected to be announced by the end of January 2026.
One Yangon polling station recorded turnout of just under 37 percent, well below participation levels in the 2020 election won by Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy. In Karenni State and other areas controlled by revolutionary forces, residents rejected the process, saying the election is neither free nor fair and excludes large portions of the population displaced by war.
Hellbound and Down 