A landmark election has just taken place in the country of Myanmar. As polls closed on Sunday, Nov. 5, 2015, the world waited to see which party would make up Myanmar’s first democratic government in over two decades. Early reports indicated that the National League for Democracy (NLD), and their leader Aung San Suu Kyi, were expected to win, picking up the earliest seats. As of Nov. 10, 2015, it is possible to report that the NLD will form Myanmar’s newest majority government.
The previous incumbent, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) of President Thein Sein, is a party with strong military ties. President Sein is a former general in the Myanmar army, and has been leader of the ruling party since winning the election in 2010. The 2010 election had its results called into question by pro-democracy groups across the globe, with both the United Nation as well as a host of Western countries condemning the corrupt voting practices. The current election, however, has been seen as a beacon of hope for the people of Myanmar as the first free and fair election for the country.
The election road has encountered obstacles, and difficulties quickly arose for voters looking for change in Myanmar. NLD leader and Nobel Laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi, is constitutionally barred from becoming the President of Myanmar once her party assumes control of the government. The limitation exists because of a rule in the military-backed constitution currently in place in Myanmar. According to existing legislation, any individuals who have spouses or children that were born out of the country are not allowed to take presidential office. Both of Suu Kyi’s sons have British passports and, her late husband was a British academic, rendering her ineligible to assume the presidency, even through a fair election.
It has been speculated that this recently implemented clause was enacted into the charter to specifically target Suu Kyi and make her unable to assume the presidency. Suu Kyi declared that, if her party won the election, she would stay leader of the NLD, even though the president would a different party member. Suu Kyi explained that, if she would not be president, she would be, “above the president.”
“If I’m required to field a president who meets the requirements of section F of the constitution, alright, then we’ll find one,” explained Suu Kyi in an interview with The Guardian. “But that won’t stop me from making all the decisions as the leader of the winning party.”
Requiring a two-thirds majority to form a government, the NLD succeeded in securing 88 per cent of the seats in the upper and lower houses of Myanmar’s parliament. In spite of this victory, the military junta still controls 25 per cent of seats and several key ministries—as per existing constitution.
An absolutely massive portion of the Myanmar population eligible to vote—approximately 80 percent—went out to cast their ballots. Most of these people live in rural areas of the country, and it will take some time before enough of these votes trickle in to make an official announcement on the government-elect of Myanmar.