CNI News
25 December 2025
Sai Aik Pao, Chairman of the Shan and Nationalities Democratic Party (SNDP), told CNI News that he believes there will not be election fraud in the upcoming 2025 general election beginning on December 28, unlike the alleged irregularities in the 2020 general election.
On February 1, 2021, the Myanmar military (Tatmadaw) seized state power, claiming that the NLD government attempted to form a government without resolving disputes regarding the 2020 general election voter lists.
Following the takeover, a state of emergency was declared and the military has governed the country up to the present day, with the first phase of the new general election scheduled to begin on December 28, 2025.
USDP Chairman U Khin Yi
Sai Aik Pao stated that the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) is expected to win first place due to its long-standing presence and strong membership, while the Shan and Nationalities Democratic Party could potentially secure second place.
“The USDP is a big party — no one can really compete with it. It has a lot of loyal party members. Our party is new, just two years old. The USDP has hundreds of thousands of members. No matter what happens, they’ll be number one. Compared to others, they have more members. And they have many campaign signboards. Our people have strong internal unity — we hand out pamphlets in the villages, and everyone wants them, reads them, talks about them, and says they will support Kyarr Phyu (SNDP). For that reason, we have a chance to be second. We believe the election will be free and fair. The Acting President has repeatedly said that the election will truly be free and fair. Since they claimed fraud in 2020, we believe this time such things will not happen again,” he said.
Six political parties will compete nationwide in the 2025 election: the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), the National Unity Party, the Myanmar Farmers Development Party, the People’s Pioneer Party, the People’s Party, and the Shan and Nationalities Democratic Party (SNDP).
Armed resistance groups and the National Unity Government (NUG) have dismissed the upcoming military-led election as a “sham election,” while observers have noted low public interest among ordinary citizens.
U Ko Ko Gyi, Sai Aik Pao, and other political party officials
Political analyst U Htet Aung Kyaw told CNI News that if voter turnout is high, other parties will gain seats more evenly, but if voter turnout is low, the USDP is likely to win a majority.
“If the public is not interested and voter turnout is low, the USDP will likely win more seats. Based on previous patterns in 2010 and 2015, roughly a solid 20 percent of voters consistently vote for the USDP. If the public doesn’t vote, the USDP could win most constituencies. But if people go out and vote, other parties and individual candidates will receive a balanced share of votes. If voter turnout is high, the results will be more equal. But if turnout is low, the USDP could win a majority. So we must watch closely,” he said.
The election will be held in three phases, with Phase 1 taking place in 102 townships on December 28.
In the upcoming multi-party democratic general election, the USDP — whose members include individuals affiliated with the military — will field more than 1,000 candidates.
