A man, a plan, an electoral sham in Myanmar

A new name, fresh appointments and a minor reshuffle at the top — it’s all part of the Myanmar junta’s bid to prepare the nation and sell the outside world on its controversial general election plan for December. The generals in Naypyitaw are counting on the election to confer the legitimacy they’ve lacked since seizing power in a February 2021 coup that ousted an elected government.

Critics have dismissed the planned vote as a junta ploy, branding it a “generals’ election” rather than a genuine general election — a label that may prove more accurate than not.

Since the coup, the military has faced armed resistance across large parts of the country. While the anti-junta forces—both political and ethnic—may not control as much territory as they claim, it is clear that the upcoming elections can hardly be described as “nationwide” and will likely be dismissed by many as a sham.

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