Myanmar pro-military USDP claims huge lead in junta-run poll
Myanmar pro-military USDP claims huge lead in junta-run poll
The USDP declares a commanding lead in the first phase of Myanmar's junta-run election in Naypyidaw, drawing Western criticism and concerns over the poll's credibility amid a crackdown on dissent.
Myanmar's dominant pro-military party has claimed an overwhelming victory in the first phase of the junta-run election, with a senior party official telling reporters that 82 lower house seats in townships with finished counting out of 102 were theirs. The official said this meant the USDP secured more than 80 percent of the lower house seats that were up for vote so far, including a clean sweep of all eight townships in the capital Naypyidaw.
The last poll in 2020 saw Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy win by a landslide, but the NLD was dissolved after the coup and did not appear on Sunday's ballots. Suu Kyi has been detained since the putsch, which triggered a civil war.
Campaigners, Western diplomats, and the United Nations' rights chief condemned the vote, arguing it would entrench military rule. The ballot paper list is loaded with military allies, and critics say the election is not credible because parties are banned and turnout is affected by coercion.
Analysts have warned the election could be rigged ahead of time, describing the contest as not credible and pointing to bans on certain parties and intimidation to influence turnout as ways the military could secure control even if the process is described as returning power to the people.
Voting began on Sunday, December 28, 2025, as voting in a phased month-long process takes place, with the junta saying the election is meant to return power to the people. Official results have yet to be posted.
