The coup military junta is planning to hold a "sham" election toward the end of December.

There are also countless political parties eager to participate and compete in this "sham" election.

A total of 57 political parties will reportedly compete in the junta's election.

Among these, six parties plan to contest nationwide across Myanmar.

Amidst the tug-of-war between those who oppose the military coup and those who support the junta's election, the political party candidates are facing difficulties in physically visiting every constituency.

Because of this, social networks such as Facebook and TikTok are delivering the candidates' messages to areas they cannot physically access.

Even before the junta's election commission officially announced the campaigning period, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP)—formed by military generals and their cronies—was already conducting organizing activities on the Facebook social network, which is widely used in Myanmar.

While the financially strong USDP, backed by substantial resources, is moving quickly on social media, other parties have been unable to demonstrate active movement even on their Facebook pages.

Among the 57 political parties, BAP found that only 26 are actively utilizing the Facebook social network.

 

 

Among them, the military generals' Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) has the highest number of followers, at over 476K (four hundred and seventy-six thousand).

Following that, businesswoman Daw Thet Thet Khine's People's Pioneer Party (PPP) is in second place with over 357K (three hundred and fifty-seven thousand) followers, and the Pa-O National Organization (PNO), an ethnic party, is third with over 148K (one hundred and forty-eight thousand) followers.

The People's Party (PP), led by Ko Ko Gyi, a member of the 88 Generation, has only 72K (seventy-two thousand) followers.

 

There are six political parties planning to contest the junta's election nationwide, and among them, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) holds a significant advantage.

 

 

The number of followers on the social media page of the National Unity Party (NUP)—which has been established for 37 years—is surprisingly low.

The NUP, which transformed from the Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP) and has a party lifespan of nearly 40 years, has only 6.8K (just over six thousand) followers.

Among the political parties contesting nationwide, there are also parties utilizing the popular TikTok social network, in addition to Facebook.

 

 

Among the political parties utilizing TikTok, the Shan and Nationalities Democratic Party, commonly known as the White Tiger Party, has the highest number of followers with over 69.3K (sixty-nine thousand and three hundred).

The Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which has the highest number of followers on Facebook, is only in second place on TikTok with over 25.3K (twenty-five thousand and three hundred) followers. The People's Pioneer Party is in third place with 17K (seventeen thousand) followers.

Ko Ko Gyi's People's Party and the Myanmar Farmers Development Party have only a few thousand followers on TikTok.

Among the six parties contesting nationwide, the National Unity Party (NUP), which has the fewest followers on social media, also has only a few hundred followers on TikTok.

 

Political parties that barely use social media

Among the political parties that will only contest at the Region or State level, there are still political parties that do not use social media.

 

 

There are six political parties that have a social media presence but barely use it. Among them, the Arakan Front Party (AFP), which has 36K (thirty-six thousand) followers and a verified blue tick on its social media page, posted its last update in September 2023.

The Lisu National Development Party and the Wa National Party, which each have 10K (ten thousand) followers, also last used their pages in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

 

Political parties whose Facebook social network pages could not be found

 

 

Out of the 57 political parties planning to contest the junta's election, nearly half—24 parties—do not even have a Facebook social network page. Most of them are parties based on ethnic minority groups.

 

Which party has the most followers on social media in Myanmar?

The National League for Democracy (NLD) party, which won the 2020 election and is now boycotting the junta's election, has the overwhelming majority of followers among political parties.

The NLD party's Facebook page has followers reaching 3.3M (over three million).

 

The military junta rejected the results of the 2020 election, which was recognized by the international community, and detained the party chairperson, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and other leaders.

 

Burma Associated Press