Tue Oct 28 13:39:41 UTC 2025: Myanmar’s Military Regime Launches Election Campaign Amid Widespread Condemnation

Naypyitaw, Myanmar – Myanmar’s military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) has kicked off its campaign for elections scheduled to begin December 28, a move widely denounced as a ploy to legitimize the junta’s seizure of power in 2021. The election is being held despite ongoing civil war and widespread opposition.

The vote is set to take place in a country gripped by conflict following the military coup that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD), which won by landslides the previous two elections. The NLD will not be participating this time, having been disbanded by the army-appointed Union Election Commission, alongside dozens of other opposition parties. Voting will not occur in one-seventh of national parliament constituencies, many of them war zones.

International observers and human rights groups have condemned the election as a sham. The European Commission will not send observers, citing concerns it will be neither free nor fair.

Opposition groups, including armed resistance movements, have vowed to disrupt the process and are calling for a boycott. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned the election could further destabilize the country. ASEAN has decided not to send observers, further undermining the military government’s attempts to gain international legitimacy.

While 57 parties have registered, the USDP is widely expected to dominate the election in the absence of the NLD and any credible national opposition. Public sentiment appears largely apathetic, with many expressing disinterest and skepticism about the legitimacy of the process. “This election means nothing to me,” one resident told AFP. “It is not a genuine election, and I see no one supporting it.”

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