Myanmar holds second round of voting in first general election since military takeover

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YANGON (AP) — Myanmar began a second round of voting Sunday in the country's first general election since a takeover that installed a military government five years ago.

Voting expanded to additional townships including some areas affected by the civil war between the military government and its armed opponents.

Polling stations opened at 6 a.m. local time 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 seen clashes in recent months or remain under heightened security, underscoring the risks surrounding the vote.

The election is being held in three phases due to armed conflicts. The first round took place Dec. 28 in 102 of the country’s total 330 townships. A final round is scheduled for Jan. 25, though 65 townships will not take part because of fighting.

Myanmar has a two-house national legislature, totaling 664 seats. The party with a combined parliamentary majority can select the new president, who can name a Cabinet and form a new government. The military automatically receives 25% of seats in each house under the constitution.

Critics say the polls organized by the military government are neither free nor fair and are an effort by the military to legitimize its rule after seizing power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021.

On Sunday, people in Yangon, the country’s largest city, and Mandalay, the second-largest, were casting their ballots at high schools, government buildings and religious buildings.

At more than 10 polling stations visited by Associated Press journalists in Yangon and Mandalay, 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 in the election, about 35% fewer than the 2020 election. The government called the turnout a success, claiming ballots were cast by more than 6 million people, about 52% of the more than 11 million eligible voters in the election's first phase.

Myo Aung, a chief minister of the Mandalay region, said more people turned out Sunday to vote than in the first phase.

“The weaknesses from Dec. 28 vote have been addressed, so I believe the January 11 election to be well organized and successful,” Myo Aung said.

Maung Maung Naing, who voted at a polling station in Mandalay’s Mahar Aung Myay township, said he wanted a government that will benefit the people.

“I only like a government that can make everything better for livelihoods and social welfare,” he said.

Sandar Min, an independent candidate from Yangon’s Latha township, said she decided to contest the election despite criticism because she wants to work with the government for the good of the country. She hopes the vote will bring change that reduces suffering.

“We want the country to be nonviolent. We do not accept violence as part of the change of the country," Sandar Min said after casting a vote. “We care deeply about the people of this country. We want to make a change that does not cause harm for the people.”

While more than 4,800 candidates from 57 parties are competing for seats in national and regional legislatures, only six parties are competing nationwide with the possibility of gaining political clout in parliament.

The first phase left the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, or USDP, in a dominant position, winning nearly 90% of those contested seats in that phase in Pyithu Hluttaw, the lower house of parliament. It also won a majority of seats in regional legislatures.

Suu Kyi, Myanmar’s 80-year-old former leader, and her party aren’t participating in the polls. She is serving a 27-year prison term on charges widely viewed as spurious and politically motivated. Her party, the National League for Democracy, was dissolved in 2023 after refusing to register under new military rules.

Other parties also refused to register or declined to run under conditions they deem unfair, while opposition groups have called for a voter boycott.

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.

“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,” Andrews said.

According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, which keeps detailed tallies of arrests and casualties linked to the nation’s political conflicts, more than 22,000 people are detained for political offenses, and more than 7,600 civilians have been killed by security forces since 2021.

The army’s takeover triggered widespread peaceful protests that soon erupted into armed resistance, and the country slipped into a civil war.

A new Election Protection Law imposes harsh penalties and restrictions for virtually all public criticism of the polls. The authorities have charged more than 330 people under new electoral law for leafleting or online activity over the past few months.

There were no reports of major interference with the polls on Sunday, though opposition organizations and armed resistance groups had vowed to disrupt the electoral process. During the first phase, attacks were reported in 11 of the 102 townships holding polls, according to the military government.