The regime enacted an Election Protection Law in July to prosecute anyone criticizing its 2025-26 polls, which begin on Dec. 28 and continue into January 2026. The law carries a minimum sentence of three years in prison to a maximum sentence of death, if convicted.
At least 194 people have been charged under this new law so far. Thirty-two have been arrested and five have been convicted, according to DVB data. Two Yangon residents were sentenced from 42 to 49 years in prison on Nov. 19 for “disrupting the elections.”
