Myanmar Resumes Voting In Second Phase Of General Election Amid Civil War

Myanmar on Sunday resumed voting in the second phase of its first general election in five years, expanding polling to additional townships, including areas impacted by the country’s protracted civil war. The election is being conducted under the authority of the military-backed government, which seized power in a 2021 coup and has since faced widespread armed resistance.

According to officials, polling stations were opened in newly added townships as part of a staggered voting process. Images from Yangon showed election authorities preparing electronic voting machines at makeshift polling centres, including monasteries, underscoring the logistical challenges of conducting elections in a country gripped by instability.

The second phase comes amid continued fighting between the military government and a range of armed opponents, including ethnic armed groups and pro-democracy resistance forces. While authorities claim voting is being held wherever “security conditions permit,” several regions remain excluded due to ongoing clashes, displacement of civilians and administrative breakdowns.

Critics have questioned the credibility of the electoral process, arguing that the absence of key opposition parties, restrictions on political activity and the exclusion of large swathes of the population undermine its legitimacy. The military has defended the elections as a step toward restoring “discipline-flourishing democracy,” a claim rejected by opposition groups and rights organisations.

As voting continues in phases, the election is shaping up less as a unifying democratic exercise and more as a flashpoint in Myanmar’s deepening political and armed crisis, with its outcome unlikely to resolve the broader conflict engulfing the count