The second phase of the three-phase junta-run election, which has been widely criticized as a sham intended to formalize military rule, is being held in 100 townships across the country on Sunday. The Irrawaddy is filing live updates on the election and related incidents.
People’s Party Flags Lack of Transparency in Advance Voting in Kawhmu Township
The junta’s Union Election Commission (UEC)’s process for collecting advance votes in Kawhmu Township, Yangon Region lacked transparency, Daw Su Su Nway, a member of the People’s Party, said to The Irrawaddy.
Kawhmu Township is 35 km from Yangon City. It is where Myanmar democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi contested and won seats in previous elections.
“They [UEC] collected the advance votes by themselves without notifying us [political parties],” Daw Su Su Nway said.
When she complained to the UEC, it allowed them to follow and observe advance-vote collecting in three villages, she added.
In Kawhmu, U Kyaw Kyaw Htwe, an 88 Generation student activist, is running under the banner of the People’s Party led by fellow student activist Ko Ko Gyi.
As expected, the military-proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) received more advance votes, according to Daw Su Su Nway.
Notably, she also said that a voting machine in Kha Rike Khani Village in Kawhmu broke down six times while people were casting ballots.
The second phase of the junta’s election was held in 100 townships across the country, including 16 townships in Yangon.
USDP sweeps seats in Yangon’s Cocokyun Township
COCOKYUN, YANGON
The Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) secured all seats up for grabs in Yangon Region’s Cocokyun Township during Sunday’s second round of voting, delivering decisive victories for junta Prime Minister Nyo Saw and former deputy police chief Aung Naing Thu.
In the Lower House race, Nyo Saw crushed People’s Pioneer Party (PPP) candidate U Win Kyaw Thu, winning nearly every advance ballot. A PPP official conceded the party had been “wiped out,” noting it secured only 25 votes in the Lower House election, about 60 in the regional parliament vote, and 15 in the Upper House race.
Aung Naing Thu defeated PPP rival U Zaw Ye Htoo by a wide margin to claim a Yangon Region Assembly seat.
Cocokyun Township has roughly 1,000 eligible voters, with more than 370 advance ballots cast — almost all for the USDP. The voting process has now concluded.
Situated 420 km southwest of Yangon between the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea, the Coco Islands host a naval base and carry a dark legacy. Under dictator Ne Win, political activists were once exiled and imprisoned there.
Ex-Generals Contest in Bago’s Pauk Khaung
Vice-chair of the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) former Lieutenant General Myo Zaw Thein voted in the junta’s election in his hometown of Pauk Khaung, Bago Region on Sunday. The former adjutant-general is himself contesting a Lower House seat in Pauk Khaung on the USDP’s ticket. His rivals include candidates from six parties including the National Unity Party, Shan and Nationalities Democratic Party, People’s Party and People’s Pioneer Party.
Deputy Sports and Youth Affairs Minister former Major General Zin Min Htet is running for an Upper House seat in Pauk Khaung. He previously served as deputy home affairs minister and police chief.
NLD turncoat Daw Sandar Min votes as independent Yangon candidate
Former National League for Democracy (NLD) lawmaker Daw Sandar Min, who is contesting the junta-organized election as an independent, voted at a polling station in Latha Township, Yangon, on Sunday.
She was expelled by the NLD for collaborating with the junta after the 2021 coup, before joining the National Democratic Force (NDF), led by a junta advisor, as vice chair in August last year. The NDF was dissolved by the junta’s electoral body for allegedly violating the regime’s political party registration law.
The junta has also disbanded the elected NLD and other opposition parties and imprisoned its leaders, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.
Election official killed in drone attack on GAD office in Bago
BAGO
A junta election official was killed Sunday morning when a General Administration Department office in Htantabin Township, Bago Region was hit by a drone attack. According to an official from the Taungoo District’s Union Election Commission, an assistant director from the UEC was killed, and one staff member was injured in the attack.
The second phase of the junta’s election is taking place in 100 townships across the country, including Htantabin and 11 other townships in Bago Region, on Sunday. While details on additional casualties or damage following the attack are not yet available, an official told The Irrawaddy that voting activities at polling stations are continuing.
Bago resistance presses offensive as regime’s second vote begins
BAGO
People’s Defence Forces (PDFs) attacked a junta checkpoint on the old Yangon-Mandalay road in Pyu Township, Bago Region on Sunday morning as the second phase of the regime’s elections began. The fierce clash forced locals to flee their homes. The assault was the latest in a wider resistance offensive in Bago, which is included in the junta’s second-round vote. Last week, PDF Military Operational Zone 2 said fighters under its command had killed around 40 junta troops in a dozen attacks in three Bago townships along the same road.
Junta officials resort to loudspeakers as voters stay home in Pazundaung
YANGON, 1:00 PM
Myanmar regime authorities used loudspeakers to urge people to go out and vote after seeing low voter turnout in Pazundaung Township, Yangon, on Sunday, according to residents.
A resident who voted in the morning said around 10 people showed up at a polling station at Ward No. 7 in the township. Around noon, regime authorities drove a vehicle around the township, calling on people to vote. Residents told The Irrawaddy that they stayed at home.
The regime is holding Phase 2 of the election in 100 townships across the country in a process that has been widely rejected both domestically and internationally.
Yangon commuters stopped for random checks as voting gets under way
YANGON, 1:00 PM
Myanmar’s regime has tightened security across Yangon, deploying armed forces in several townships where the junta-organized election is being held, according to local residents. Coup leader Min Aung Hlaing also inspected polling stations in Hlaing and Insein townships earlier today.
Some commuters were reportedly stopped and checked by soldiers.
The Irrawaddy observed armed police and pro-regime Pyu Saw Htee militias guarding every polling station in Shwepyitha Township, while soldiers were stationed at road junctions and along streets. Military vehicles were also seen patrolling the area.
The regime has similarly deployed police forces in Insein Township. Compared with the 2020 general election—whichthe now-ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) won in a landslide victory—voter turnout in Yangon appearedsignificantly lower on Sunday.
Phase 2 of the elections are held across 100 townships on Sunday. The junta’s planned election has been widely rejected not only by the anti-regime revolutionary groups, but also the international community including Western democratic countries, rights groups and election watchdogs, saying it is a sham.
Security tight in Mandalay for second phase vote
MANDALAY, 12:30 PM
In Mandalay, which was hit by rocket attacks on the day of Phase 1 of the election, security has been further tightened for Phase 2. Large numbers of junta soldiers, police, blue-uniformed so-called People’s Security Forces, as well as Pyu Saw Htee members have been deployed to guard polling stations.
Phase 2 of the election is being held in nine townships in Mandalay Region including Maha Aung Myay, Pyigyidagun and Amarapura, but also in Tada-U, Madaya, Sintgaing, Kyaukpadaung, Thazi and Wundwin. A total of 536 candidates, including independent candidates, are contesting the vote.
A Mandalay resident told The Irrawaddy, “Up until around 9 a.m., there were only a small number of voters at polling stations in the Mahamyaing area. In Phase 1, polling stations were guarded by blue-uniformed personnel, police and soldiers, but in this Phase 2, we are seeing Pyu Saw Htee members also guarding the polling stations.”
More than 1 million eligible voters are reported to be able to cast ballots at over 1,000 polling stations.
Junta Chief Inspects Polls in Yangon
YANGON, 9:00 AM
Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing inspected voting at polling stations in Yangon’s Hlaing, Insein and Latha townships on Sunday, as the second phase of the widely criticized election continued in 100 townships in 12 states and regions.
Myanmar Junta Opens Polls for Second Phase of 2026 Election
Myanmar’s junta opened polls for the second phase of elections on Sunday. The Election Commission announced that voting is being conducted in 100 townships across 12 states and regions, primarily in junta-controlled areas in northern, southern, central and eastern Myanmar.
This second phase follows the initial round of voting held on Dec. 28, 2025. According to results from the 102 townships reported in the first phase, the military backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) has maintained a dominant lead, capturing more than 70 percent of the total advance votes tallied so far.
UPDATED at 17:00, January 11.
