YANGON – The final phase of Myanmar’s comprehensive three-stage general election unfolded on Sunday, concluding a nearly month-long voting process. This election has cemented the military rulers’ grip on power, ensuring they, along with their allies, will command a significant majority in the new government.

Amidst this electoral process, critics have raised concerns, arguing that the elections lack the hallmarks of being free and fair. They assert that the polls are merely a tool to legitimize the military’s continued dominance, following its forceful removal of Aung San Suu Kyi’s civilian government in February 2021.

In the early rounds of voting, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which is aligned with the military, secured the majority of contested seats. Additionally, the military is constitutionally guaranteed 25% of the seats in both the upper and lower houses of Parliament, ensuring its control over the legislative body alongside its political allies.

There is widespread anticipation that Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the current head of Myanmar’s military government, will be appointed as president when the newly elected Parliament convenes. This expectation is shared across different segments of the population, both supporters and critics alike.

Adding to the complexity of this election is the backdrop of an ongoing civil war, which has significantly constrained voting in some regions, further questioning the inclusivity and fairness of the electoral process.

The army’s 2021 takeover triggered widespread opposition that dragged Myanmar into a civil war. Security concerns engendered by the fighting meant voting was not held in more than one-fifth of the country’s 330 townships, another reason the process has been described as neither free nor fair.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan on Tuesday said the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which Myanmar is a member, did not send observers and would not certify the election, citing concerns over the lack of inclusive and free participation.

Min Aung Hlaing pushed back against critics of the polls on Sunday, declaring that “the people who live in Myanmar are the ones who vote. Not those from outside.”

“We are not concerned whether this is recognized by foreign countries or not. We recognize the people’s vote. It should be like that,” he told journalists after inspecting a polling station in Mandalay, the country’s second-largest city.

Asked if he intended to take part in the new government, he declined to comment, noting the president would be selected when Parliament meets.

Suu Kyi, Myanmar’s 80-year-old former leader, and her party are not participating in the polls. She is serving a 27-year prison term on charges widely viewed as spurious and politically motivated. Her party, the National League for Democracy, won landslide victories in the 2020 and 2015 elections, but was forced to dissolve in 2023 after refusing to register under new military rules.

Other parties also refused to register or declined to run under conditions they deem unfair, while opposition groups called for a voter boycott.

A new Election Protection Law imposed harsh penalties for most public criticism of the polls, with the authorities charging more than 400 people recently for activities such as leafleting or online activity.

The previous two rounds of voting were disrupted by armed groups opposed to military rule carrying out attacks on polling stations and government buildings in several townships, killing at least two administrative officials, according to the military government.

Voting on Sunday began at 6 a.m. in 61 townships across six regions and three states, including many areas that have seen clashes in recent months.

At the polling station in Dagon township in Yangon, the country’s largest city, 86-year-old Soe Tint said he cast his ballot because he wants the country to be peaceful and develop “in all sectors, including education.”

At the same station, Lae Lae Yi, 62, was less hopeful.

“I’m not expecting anything at all, because there is no motivation,” she said.

No voting in many areas beset by fighting

The election is being held in three phases due to the armed conflict. The first two rounds took place on Dec. 28 and Jan. 11 in 202 of the country’s 330 townships. A total of 67 townships – mostly areas controlled by armed opposing groups – did not participate, reducing the original seats in the 664-member national parliament to 586.

Final results for all parliament seats are expected to be announced later this week. The military government has announced that Parliament will be convened in March, and the new government will take up its duties in April.

The party with a majority in the combined upper and lower houses of Parliament can select the new president, who in turn names a Cabinet and forms a new government.

More than 4,800 candidates from 57 political parties are competing for seats in national and regional legislatures, though only six are contesting nationwide. Seventeen other parties aside from the USDP have won a small number of seats in the legislature, ranging from one to 10.

The military government said there are more than 24 million eligible voters, about 35% fewer than in 2020. The turnout in the first two rounds of voting was between 50% and 60%, it announced.

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Peck reported from Bangkok.