Myanmar plans April by-election, including in conflict areas — SkimNews
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- Myanmar's election commission scheduled by-elections for April 4 next year in 55 constituencies to fill vacant parliamentary seats, state media Global New Light of Myanmar reported.
- Min Aung Hlaing became president after the December–January general election was won overwhelmingly by the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party in the absence of any viable opposition; the United Nations and many Western countries called the vote a sham.
- Union Solidarity and Development Party currently controls 84% of the bicameral parliament.
- Sagaing Region is among the areas covered by the by-election, with several seats encompassing townships there and in Chin and Shan states, where anti-military resistance forces maintain a strong presence.
- Rakhine state was left off the by-election slate, even as the military remains locked in fierce fighting there with the rebel Arakan Army.
- 121 constituencies were excluded from general-election voting because they were out of the military's control, out of the 692 where voting was held.
- 2021 coup triggered a civil war that has killed an estimated 100,000 people and displaced more than 3.5 million.
Why it matters: April 4's 55-seat vote lands in Sagaing, Chin and Shan — resistance strongholds — while the Union Solidarity and Development Party already controls 84% of parliament after a poll that drew no viable opposition. The military chose to leave Rakhine, where it is fighting the Arakan Army, off the slate entirely.
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