BURMA 2010 ELECTION RECAP by ALTSEAN-BN 2010/1077: November 26, 2010

L T S E N
B U R M A
A L T E R N A T I V E A S E A N N E T W O R K O N B U R M A
c amp a i g n s , a d v o c a c y & c a p a c i t y - b u i l d i n g f o r h uma n r i g h t s & d emo c r a c y
P O B O X 2 9 6 , L A R D P R A O P O S T O F F I C E , B A N G K O K 1 0 3 1 0 , T H A I L A N D
TEL 081 850 9008 [6681] 850 9008 EMAIL publications@altsean.org WEB www.altsean.org
BN 2010/1077: November 26, 2010
BURMA 2010 ELECTION RECAP
Election Day
Widespread evidence of electoral fraud, irregularities, threats, harassment, and lack of independent
monitoring characterized Election Day and the days leading up to it:
• In the days before the election, local SPDC officials, polling station officials, and Union Solidarity
and Development (USDP) members throughout the country solicited advance and proxy votes, in the
overwhelming majority of cases specifically for the USDP.
• In many races, the addition of large numbers of advance votes for the USDP tipped the balance in
favor of its candidates.
• Local SPDC officials, Election Sub-commission members, polling station officials, and USDP
members harassed, detained, and discriminated against members and supporters of “opposition”
parties and prevented them from monitoring the vote.
• SPDC officials and members of local Election Sub-commissions actively campaigned for USDP
candidates. USDP members campaigned in the vicinity of - and sometimes inside - polling stations, in
direct violation of the SPDC election laws.
• Polling station officials failed to act in a professional, transparent, and impartial manner. In many
cases, polling station officials denied voters the right to vote and invalidated votes for “opposition”
parties.
• Booths at polling stations did not allow voters sufficient privacy to cast their votes. Ballot boxes at
polling stations were not adequately secured.
• Large numbers of voters in ethnic nationality areas found that their names were not on the voter rolls
when they went to the polling station.
• SPDC officials and USDP supporters threatened and harassed journalists and reporters trying to cover
the vote. Police in Myawaddy, Karen State, detained a Japanese journalist.
• The SPDC refused to allow international and domestic observers to monitor all polling activities.
• At least six political parties filed complaints with the SPDC Election Commission. Various party
leaders said that they would not recognize the election results due to alleged fraud and irregularities.
Reactions
The election process was met by widespread condemnation inside and outside Burma, with the
significant exception of ASEAN and China:
• Democratic Party (Myanmar) Executive Secretary Cho Cho Kyaw Nyein said the “ugliest and most
extreme level of vote-stealing took place.”
• National Democratic Force (NDF) Chairman Than Nyein said the party “never expected” the polls to
be free and fair but that the restrictions were “far more than we anticipated.”
• NDF leader Khin Maung Swe said that with the large scale advance voting by the USDP “possibly,
there will be a boycott of the poll results due to these incidents.”
• Rakhine Nationals Progressive Party Chairman Aye Maung said that if the USDP won, “ethnic and
other pro-democracy parties will boycott the election results.”
• All Mon Region Democracy Party spokesperson Nai Nwe said that if they lost the election, than “it
means the government has cheated.”
2
• UN Sec-Gen Ban Ki-moon said the “voting was held in conditions that were insufficiently inclusive,
participatory and transparent.”
• Japan’s FM Seiji Maehara said the elections “cannot be said to be complete and fair.”
• US President Barack Obama said it was “unacceptable to steal elections, as the regime in Burma has
done again for all the world to see.”
• Canada’s FM Lawrence Cannon said “Canada is deeply disappointed that the regime did not live up
to its own commitment to hold a free and fair election.”
• EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton said the SPDC
“did not take the necessary steps to ensure a free, fair and inclusive electoral process,” and that they
were “not compatible with internationally accepted standards.”
• ASEAN Chair Vietnam hailed the election as “a significant step forward” and encouraged the country
“to continue to accelerate the process of national reconciliation and democratization.”
• China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei called the elections a “critical step” and said they
were carried out in a “steady and smooth manner.”



Results

• In total, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) won 883 (or 76.52%) of the 1,154 seats
at stake in the election.
• In the People’s Assembly (Lower House), the USDP won 259 (79.69%) of the 325 seats. The USDP
dominated in the ethnic Burman-dominated Divisions. It won all seats in Mandalay and Tenasserim
Divisions, and over 90% of the seats in Irrawaddy, Magwe, Pegu, and Sagaing Divisions. In ethnic
States, the USDP won about 63% of the seats, with performances ranging from a low 46% in Shan
State to 100% in Karenni State.
• In the National Assembly (Upper House), the USDP won 129 (76.79%) of the 168 seats. The USDP
dominated in the ethnic Burman-dominated Divisions. It won all seats in Irrawaddy, Magwe,
Mandalay, Pegu, and Tenasserim Division and over 90% of the seats in Sagaing Division. In ethnic
States, the USDP won about 60% of the seats, with performances ranging from a low 41.6% in
Arakan State to 100% in Karenni State.
• In the Division and State Parliaments, the USDP won 495 (74.89%) of the 661 seats. Again, the
USDP dominated in the ethnic Burman-dominated Divisions. It won over 90% of the seats in Magwe,
Mandalay, Pegu, and Tenasserim Divisions, and over 80% of the seats in Irrawaddy, Rangoon, and
Sagaing Divisions. In ethnic areas, the USDP won about 55% of the seats, with performances ranging
from a low 40% in Arakan State to 100% in Karenni State.
• The USDP’s overwhelming majority in both houses of Parliament, coupled with the 25% of the seats
occupied by the military, means that the USDP/military bloc can unilaterally amend the 2008
constitution (which, for ordinary matters, requires the approval of over 75% of the representatives of
both houses of Parliament). In addition, the USDP/military bloc can unilaterally elect Burma’s next
President.1
• Out of the 37 political parties that contested the polls, 15 parties did not win any seats. Of the 22
parties that took at least one seat, 15 of them won less than 1% of the seats.
• Seventeen of the 24 ethnic-based parties that participated in the polls won at least one seat. In total,
they accounted for 15.69% of the seats.
• The second largest vote winner, the pro-junta National Unity Party (NUP), won only 63 seats (or
5.46%) although it fielded 975 candidates.
• The largest “opposition” party, the National Democratic Force (NDF), won 16 seats (or 1.39%).
• The SPDC Election Commission claimed that the overall turnout was 73.8% and even reached over
102% [sic] in some areas.2 To date the Election Commission has failed to publish any official
statistics on voter turnout. In some areas it was reported that the turnout was as low as 35%.3
1 The Presidency consists of one President and two Vice-Presidents, elected by the Presidential Electoral College. The
Presidential Electoral College is composed of three groups from the National Parliament: a) The 330 elected representatives from
the People’s Assembly; b) The 168 elected representatives from the National Assembly; and
c) The 166 appointed Defense Services personnel from both Assemblies. Each group elects a Vice-President. Then the entire
National Parliament elects the President from among the three Vice-Presidents.
2 DPA (09 Nov 10) Pro-junta party heads for victory in Burma's election; Irrawaddy (19 Nov 10) Election Results a Joke
3 WSJ (08 Nov 10) Burma’s hollow election; IPS (10 Nov 10) Few Surprises in First Poll in 20 Years