Myanmar junta sets Dec. 28 for first phase of general election

Khine Lin Kyaw, Bloomberg News on Aug 18, 2025

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Myanmar’s military regime said it has scheduled Dec. 28 for the first phase of a general election, despite ongoing civil conflict and boycotts by democratic opposition groups.

The Union Election Commission announced Monday that seats in both chambers of parliament as well as at the provincial level would be contested in the “multi-party democratic general election.” The military seized power in a 2021 coup, triggering armed conflict that left large swaths of the country under the control of armed ethnic groups.

The election body said the dates for subsequent phases, which would be held over December and January due to security risks, will be announced later.

The move comes as junta chief Min Aung Hlaing seeks to bolster his standing on the international stage, faced with a collapsing economy and growing resistance from armed, pro-democracy groups.

He said last week that the vote “must be held without fail” despite continued violence that has killed thousands of civilians since the coup.

Leading democracies, including the U.S., have dismissed any junta-organized elections as illegitimate. The main opposition party, National League for Democracy, was officially deregistered in 2023, while its 80-year-old leader Aung San Suu Kyi is currently serving a 27-year prison term on multiple charges.

Reports indicate that the military has nevertheless lost its grip over much of the country, with ethnic groups in northern and western regions making significant territorial gains.

While fighting continues, observers say rebel groups are hampered by the military’s airstrike capabilities and remain largely fragmented, while it remains unlikely they can breach junta strongholds in the country’s largest cities.