Myanmar opposition secures 536 parliamentary seats

Even with a win for her party, Suu Kyi can not become president under the country’s constitution as she is married to a British citizen and her children have United Kingdom passports. The military had taken over the Asian nation of 56 million in a coup in 1962.

US President Barack Obama has congratulated Myanmar’s longtime pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi on success in “historic” elections, the White House said Thursday. Although it’s not clear what exactly Aung San Suu Kyi has in mind when she calls for “reconciliation” with the military, she will need to forge a working relationship with the generals in order to address a host of issues facing the country.

The NLD said in a post on its Facebook page that Suu Kyi wrote to the president, commander-in-chief Min Aung Hlaing and House Speaker Shwe Mann asking for a meeting next week, presumably to discuss forming a new government.

Under the 2008 constitution, the military automatically controls 25 percent of all parliamentary seats, and maintains control of several key government posts, including defense, interior and border security.

She sent three separate letters to the head of the military, the president and the speaker of parliament, requesting dialogue within a week about transferring power.

Ms. Suu Kyi’s early move to reach out to the army and its political allies appears to show willingness to work constructively with her former captors to cut through Myanmar’s tangled politics. They have agreed to hold talks on national reconciliation with her after the final results are announced.

By Wednesday evening, the commission had announced official results for 232 of the 491 seats contested in Sunday’s election. The NLD has officially won 238 seats in the lower house – which means it now will have the power to pass bills – and 110 in the upper house, for a total of 348.

Win Htein, spokesman of the NLD said the release of the results was intentionally delayed by the election commission.

The US State Department said it welcomed the general election as a victory for the country’s people.

The latest on landmark elections in Myanmar. Aung San Suu Kyi has transformed from a symbol of an embattled democracy movement into a strong leader of the upcoming government of Myanmar.

In an interview with the BBC on Tuesday, her first since the vote, Ms Suu Kyi said the polls were “largely free” though not entirely fair, and that there had been a few irregularities.

The military and the largest parties in the upper house and the lower house will each nominate a candidate for president. The top vote-getter will be president, while the two runners-up will be vice presidents.