Fewer than 1,000 voters turned out at each polling station in Myawaddy Township, Karen State, during Phase 1 of the junta-led election on December 28, sources said.
According to a statement from the junta-controlled Election Commission, 24 polling stations have been set up across seven downtown wards and village tracts including Pulweipu, Phakalu, Mekanei, and Mepaleit in Myawaddy Township, where more than 60,000 voters are eligible.
On average, each polling station had between 1,000 and 2,000 eligible voters, but fewer than 1,000 ballots were cast at each by the time polls closed at 4:00 pm. In some villages, only about half of eligible voters turned out, observers monitoring the voting process said.
“There were very few voters in Myawaddy. By the time polling stations closed, almost all had recorded fewer than 1,000 voters. In the morning, only a few hundred people were seen at the stations, and by noon, most had become almost completely empty,” said an observer.
Some junta-aligned Karen armed groups have been providing security at polling stations in Shwe Kokko Town, a notorious telecom scam hub, and in various village tracts in Myawaddy Township. Despite efforts to persuade residents to vote, turnout remained low, according to a source close to the junta-aligned Karen Border Guard Force (BGF).
“In some areas, junta-appointed 10-household and 100-household elders went door to door handing out ballot papers and urging people to go to the polling stations. Some people did go, but many were unfamiliar with how to use the voting machines and just pressed the buttons randomly. Compared with the 2020 election, it was very deserted this time. Back then, polling stations were crowded with voters,” said a Myawaddy resident.
On December 27, a day before the election, explosions occurred in parts of downtown Myawaddy. There has been speculation that the blasts may have deterred people from going to polling stations on election day.
The junta has yet to release the voting results in Karen State, but many voters said they cast their ballots for Karen ethnic parties.
