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No, Myanmar didn’t use Dominion Voting Systems for its election
If Your Time is short
- Dominion Voting Systems technology has never been used in Myanmar, according to the company.
- Voters in Myanmar used paper ballots.
- We found no evidence to support this claim.
In November, after Aung San Suu Kyi’s ruling party in Myanmar claimed an overwhelming victory in the country’s parliamentary election, the military-backed opposition alleged election fraud.
Myanmar’s election commission rejected those claims, but on Feb. 1, the military seized control of the country and detained Suu Kyi among other members of her party.
On social media, some proponents of conspiracy theories saw the coup as a sign that something similar could happen in the United States, where supporters of former President Donald Trump have made baseless allegations about voter fraud and sought to overturn his election loss. Many of those claims involved Dominion Voting Systems, which makes election software and hardware.
Now, another unfounded claim about the company is circulating online.
"The White House is freaking out after Myanmar military arrests political leaders for election fraud in their November 8 elections," one Facebook post said. "Myanmar used Dominion Voting Systems."
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This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)
Searching online, including reviewing news stories about the election and military ouster, we found no evidence to support that claim.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Dominion told PolitiFact: "This is a completely false claim. Dominion systems have never been used in Myanmar at any time."
That’s corroborated by a report on the 2020 election in Myanmar, which doesn’t mention Dominion or any electronic voting system. Voters used paper ballots, folding them to ensure secrecy before dropping them in the ballot box.
We rate this post False.
Our Sources
Facebook post, Feb. 1, 2021
2020 General Election in Myanmar — Fact Sheet, 2020
Reuters, Timeline: Events in troubled Myanmar since Suu Kyi’s NLD party came to power, Jan. 31, 2021
The Associated Press, Myanmar election commission rejects military’s fraud claims, Jan. 29, 2021
BBC News, Myanmar coup: What is happening and why?, Feb. 2, 2021
Rolling Stone, QAnon conspiracy theorist are emboldened by the coup in Myanmar, Feb. 2, 2021
Statement from Dominion Voting Systems, Feb. 2, 2021
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No, Myanmar didn’t use Dominion Voting Systems for its election
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