Myanmar coup leader Min Aung Hlaing becomes president

Senior General Min Aung Hlaing was sworn in as Myanmar’s president on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Naypyidaw, five years after he led the 2021 coup that removed the elected government. The ceremony marked a formal step that consolidates his leadership after a pro-military parliament selected him for the post.

Officials said the presidency followed a parliamentary vote held last week in which Min Aung Hlaing was chosen from three nominated candidates. The two other nominees were appointed as vice presidents under the same process, according to the account of the vote.

Min Aung Hlaing, 69, took power in 2021 from Aung San Suu Kyi. That takeover sparked large protests, a civil disobedience campaign, and the emergence of armed groups opposed to the coup. The military response escalated into a civil war, with an estimated 96,000 deaths and 3.6 million people displaced since 2021, according to ACLED and the United Nations.

Myanmar’s political standing in the region also shifted after the coup. The country was suspended from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a move that reflected the bloc’s response to the change in government and the subsequent conflict.

The presidency comes after a parliamentary election held in December and January. Democracy watchdogs and Western governments criticized that vote as a sham, according to the source material. The pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party won over 80 percent of the contested seats, while military members held a quarter of the seats that were not subject to election.

Voting did not take place in all parts of the country because of ongoing fighting, which further weakened the credibility of the process described by critics. The gaps in voting coverage were cited as another factor undermining the legitimacy of the election that preceded Min Aung Hlaing’s elevation to the presidency.

Representatives from China, India, Thailand, and 20 other nations attended the inauguration in Naypyidaw. Their presence underscored the level of diplomatic engagement around Myanmar’s leadership transition, even as the country remains affected by conflict and regional suspension.