Myanmar election, set for November 8, will test democratic reforms but NLD landslide tipped
- Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi won power in a landslide in 2015 that ended decades of junta rule
- The army still wields enormous power under the constitution, which guarantees it control over key ministries, and 25 per cent of seats in parliament
A statement attributed to union election commission chairman Hla Thein and read out on state television said a “multiparty general election for the parliament” would be held on that day.
The polls are seen by analysts as an important test of Myanmar’s transition away from direct military rule.
Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi won power in a landslide in 2015 that ended decades of junta rule. But her administration has come under pressure internationally over a military crackdown that drove hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims into Bangladesh in 2017.
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Myanmar’s leader, Aung San Suu Kyi deflects Rohingya genocide claims
At home, while Suu Kyi remains overwhelmingly popular, her government has struggled to match sky-high expectations and has had to rebut criticism over escalating fighting with ethnic armed groups and slower-than-expected economic growth.