CNI News

8 January 2026

Although the list of eligible voters was announced three times and Election Phase (1) was held, there were people who were not included on the voter list. 

Therefore, there is a desire to allow anyone who holds a national registration card (ID) to be permitted to vote, said U Mann Aung Pyay Soe, Chairman of the Karen National Democratic Party (KNDP), in an interview with CNI News.

Political parties have pointed out that although the voter list should have stabilized at least one month before voting day, it was found to remain unstable right up to the day the election was held.

For this reason, U Mann Aung Pyay Soe stated to CNI News that he wants any person who holds proof of citizenship in the form of a national ID card to be allowed to vote.

He said, “A citizen may have a national ID card and be listed in the household registration, but their name does not appear on the voter list. The idea now is that one can vote only if their name is on the voter list. What we want is that if someone already has proof of citizenship in the form of a national ID card, then they should be allowed to vote, regardless. We have submitted this proposal. However, the law says that only those whose names appear on the voter list can vote, so it is very difficult.”

A Citizen Verification Card being shown

“For example, in my case, my name appeared on the first voter list, but my wife’s name did not. We did not check the second list. On the third list, both of our names appeared, but not on the street where we actually live—it was listed under a different street. Moreover, the neighboring couple’s names were not on the voter list, while the names of their deceased parents appeared instead. Too much emphasis is placed on whether a name appears on the voter list or not. That is why, if people have national ID cards and want to vote, we want them to be allowed to vote,” he said.

Although the voter lists were announced three times at the relevant ward and village-tract sub-commissions, it is understood that the lists were not consistent from one announcement to another.

Among the three published voter lists, political parties reported encountering problems such as names not appearing in the first and second lists, incorrect street names for residences, and cases where names appeared in the first two lists but disappeared from the third list.

The voter list should be accurate, and based on experiences during Election Phase (1), instability in the voter list should not occur, said Sai Aik Pao, Chairman of the Shan and Nationalities Democratic Party (White Tiger Party), in an interview with CNI News.

He said,“A citizen’s name did not appear on the first voter list. They applied using Form 3 to be included in the second list, and their name appeared. But on the actual voting day, their name was no longer there. That kind of situation is happening, and it should not happen. It must be precise. For example, if there are five people, only about two appear on the list while three do not. Situations like that should not exist.”

People casting their ballots

Given the current political environment, people should be grateful that there are still members of the public turning out to vote. 
However, the public is also weak in checking the voter lists when they are announced. It is rare for voters to arrive on voting day already holding their voter list number; many only search for their names on the voter list after arriving at the polling station, said Dr. Nyo Nyo Thin, founder of the Yangon Monitoring Group, to CNI News.

She added that political parties contesting the election should also go and check the voter lists in their constituencies and inform voters in advance so that the public is ready and able to vote.

Dr. Nyo Nyo Thin said, “Relevant parties need to make much greater efforts than now. In constituencies I observed in past elections, I saw major political parties provide voters in advance with their voter list numbers—telling them which polling station they are assigned to and what their number is—so voters could easily go and cast their ballots. As a result, voter turnout increased. Now, political parties are struggling amid many difficulties, so many cannot do this work. In some areas, the only party capable of doing so is the USDP. Political parties seem to be limited to activities like putting up signboards and distributing pamphlets when it comes to mobilizing the public. Therefore, political parties also have their own weaknesses,” she said.

Currently, during the election period, in order to ensure that voters who have lost or damaged their citizenship cards do not lose their right to vote, township immigration offices are providing special services without holidays, according to announcements by the Department of Immigration.

In Election Phase (1), held on December 28, 2025, more than 11 million people were eligible to vote, and more than 6 million cast their ballots, according to the Union Election Commission (UEC).