(Yangon, 4th) The pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) has gained an absolute advantage in the first phase of voting in Myanmar’s general election. According to official media’s vote count, the USDP has already won 90% of the seats in the lower house.
According to AFP, official partial results released by the Union Election Commission (UEC) through state media on Saturday (Jan 3) and Sunday (Jan 4) show that the USDP has won 87 out of the 96 lower house seats.
Six ethnic minority parties won a total of nine seats.
According to the UEC results released by the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar, the USDP also won 14 out of 15 regional and state-level seats announced in the first phase.
According to the UEC results released by the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar, the USDP also won 14 out of 15 regional and state-level seats announced in the first phase.
Last week, the USDP declared an overwhelming victory in the first phase of voting.
This is the first voting held in Myanmar since the military coup in 2021, but because anti-junta parties were unable to participate, it has been criticized by the United Nations, some Western countries and human rights organizations.
The USDP made up one-fifth of the total candidates in this election. Previously, on Wednesday (Dec 31), the junta announced that the turnout in the first phase of voting was only 52%, with over 6 million people casting their ballots.
This is the first voting held in Myanmar since the military coup in 2021, but because anti-junta parties were unable to participate, it has been criticized by the United Nations, some Western countries and human rights organizations.
The USDP made up one-fifth of the total candidates in this election. Previously, on Wednesday (Dec 31), the junta announced that the turnout in the first phase of voting was only 52%, with over 6 million people casting their ballots.
The general election in Myanmar consists of three phases, with the first phase starting on December 28 last year. The upcoming second and third phases will be held on January 11 and 25, respectively. The ruling junta claims that the three-stage voting process will bring political stability to the country, but democracy watchdogs warn that the election will further consolidate military rule.