Myanmar to hold first general election since 2021 coup amid ongoing civil war

FILE – A voter casts ballot at a polling station on Nov. 8, 2020, in Yangon, Myanmar. (AP Photo/Thein Zaw, File) Thein Zaw/AP/AP hide caption

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Myanmar’s military has announced the first phase of a general election to be held in late December, in a poll widely seen as an attempt to lend the junta legitimacy following its 2021 coup.

State-run television said on Monday that the elections will take place over three separate days, with the first scheduled for December 28. The next two phases are expected to occur sometime in January, though no specific dates have been announced due to “security concerns.” Voting will be held in more than 300 constituencies nationwide — including some areas currently under rebel control.

Opponents see the forthcoming election as a “sham”

But with large parts of the country under opposition control amid an ongoing civil war, analysts warn that election logistics could prove challenging.

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The conflict that erupted after the 2021 coup has claimed thousands of lives, displaced millions, and shows no sign of ending. Many opponents of the military have dismissed the planned election as a “sham.”

Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) has been banned from participating, and many other groups have vowed to boycott the vote entirely — raising further doubts about the credibility of the exercise.