Naypyidaw, April 4: Myanmar’s junta chief, Min Aung Hlaing, has been elected as the country’s president, having received the highest number of votes among three nominated candidates, media reports confirmed on Friday.
According to The Irrawaddy, Hlaing’s two vice presidents include former Prime Minister Nyo Saw, appointed by the military and a long-time loyalist, and Nan Ni Ni Aye, who leads the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) in Karen State.
Days before his election, Min Aung Hlaing stepped down from his position as Commander-in-Chief, appointing General Ye Win Oo as his successor. The handover ceremony for the Commander-in-Chief of Defense Services took place on Monday at Naypyidaw’s Zeyathiri Beikman.
State-run Myanmar Radio and Television reported that on Monday, Myanmar’s lower house, the Pyithu Hluttaw, nominated Min Aung Hlaing as a candidate for the vice presidency. According to Myanmar’s constitution, the Union Parliament elects the president from among three vice-presidential candidates.
Elections in Myanmar were held in December 2025 and January 2026. The Irrawaddy reported that the USDP won these elections, during which most opposition parties were barred from participating.
Min Aung Hlaing has ruled Myanmar since 2021, when he ordered a coup to overthrow the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. Following the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Aung San Suu Kyi, winning both the 2015 and 2020 elections, Min Aung Hlaing claimed that the latter vote was marred by electoral fraud, using this allegation to justify the coup.
At that time, he stated that this was not an attempt to seize power but a necessary step taken amid a constitutional “state of emergency.” Following the military takeover, the junta annulled the results of the 2020 elections, dissolved the NLD, and detained Aung San Suu Kyi, cabinet members, and thousands of democracy activists.
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