Myanmar parliament dominated by pro-military party convenes after 5 years
Myanmar's parliament convened on Monday, March 16, 2026, for the first time since the 2021 coup. The opening follows elections held in December and January, which were dominated by the pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) due to the exclusion of major opposition parties.
The story so far
- Mar 14
- Mar 16
How outlets cover it
2 outletsNot rated on the left–right scale. It describes Western party politics and doesn’t fit state media or outlets outside that system, so we show ownership and country instead.
Open questions and key claims
Official figures put this at about 44 per cent of all ballots cast.
The USDP’s sweeping victory in the recent election – surpassing 80 per cent of elected seats in the national legislature
The army-backed USDP won 81 per cent of available seats on a turnout of just 50 per cent.
A quarter of the available seats in the upper and lower houses were reserved for the military, with 166 seats set aside.
The pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) won 339 of the remaining seats, dominating amid low voter turnout.
Khinch Yi, a former general and police chief, was elected speaker of the lower house after the USDP's victory.
Who and where
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