Ethnic Rakhine politicians suffered heavy defeats to the military’s proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) in the junta-controlled election on December 28, according to local sources.
Despite their pre-election confidence, veteran politicians Dr. Aye Maung of the Arakan Front Party (AFP) and U Ba Shein of the Rakhine Nationalities Party (RNP) failed to secure seats in the Upper House first-past-the-post poll.
Voting was held in the junta’s last three remaining strongholds in Rakhine, where 14 out of 17 townships have been captured by the Arakan Army.
Dr. Aye Maung lost in Sittwe (Constituency 3), while U Ba Shein was defeated in Kyaukphyu (Constituency 2).
The junta-appointed Union Election Commission (UEC) has yet to release official results, but local sources confirmed the duo were defeated. The election body has only announced winners of Lower House seats, with the USDP securing victory in Sittwe and Kyaukphyu, and the RNP winning Manaung.
Opposition figures who boycotted the election called the losses politically humiliating.
“The regime has decided not to use [the ethnic Rakhine candidates], and the people have decisively rejected them. This means their political careers are over,” said U Myo Kyaw, secretary of the Arakan League for Democracy (ALD), which boycotted the vote. He added that Rakhine people would view the losing candidates as “traitors.”
The election took place as junta forces pounded AA-controlled territory in Rakhine with airstrikes and artillery. The regime has also lost control in large areas of Sittwe and Kyaukphyu, where 56 wards and village tracts were excluded from the vote.
Locals reported low voter turnout, with most ballots cast by military personnel, election commission staff, and party members.
“Few people turned out, but people who live near administration offices felt compelled to vote,” said a young woman in Sittwe. “We heard Muslims were forced to vote.”
In Sittwe and Kyaukphyu, USDP candidates reportedly won three times more votes than Dr. Aye Maung and U Ba Shein.
In Kyaukphyu, the military’s proxy party candidate secured 6,248 votes—including 2,565 advance ballots—followed by U Ba Shein with 2,649 votes (72 advance), and the AFP (4,123/64), according to Rakhine‑based news outlet DMG.
In Sittwe, the USDP gained 25,000 votes, ahead of Dr. Aye Maung with 8,000-plus, and the RNP on 6,000-plus.
Both Rakhine politicians are former leaders of the Arakan National Party, which dominated previous elections in the western state. Dr. Aye Maung formed the ANP in 2018 while U Ba Shein launched the RNP after the 2021 coup.
Dr. Aye Maung was serving a 20-year prison sentence for treason under the now-ousted National League for Democracy government but was released by the junta in 2021.
Min Aung Hlaing granted him a full pardon last September, allowing him to contest the election. The move raised speculation that the regime intends to use him as a nominal ethnic figure in the new “elected” government.
Dr. Aye Maung did not respond to repeated calls from The Irrawaddy. However, he told the BBC he had anticipated the loss and accepted the result.
U Ba Shein acknowledged his defeat but did not comment further.
The junta has announced a three-phase election, with the second phase scheduled for January 11 in 100 townships and the third on January 25 in 63 townships. No further voting is expected in Rakhine, with nine townships—including AA-controlled areas like Thandwe, Toungup, Gwa, and Ann—already excluded from the plan.
The two ethnic parties also contested for four other seats—two in the Upper House and two in the Rakhine State Parliament—under the proportional representation system. The regime had not released results for those constituencies as of press time.
