An Inside Look at Life Under Myanmar's Fledgling Democracy

Myanmar holds a landmark general election on Nov. 8 that will provide the biggest test of the army's pledge to consolidate the nation's transition to democracy following a half-century of military rule. The personal popularity of Aung San Suu Kyi may help sweep her party to power in the first national vote since a nominally civilian government was installed by the junta in 2011, but the constitution still bars her from the presidency because her children hold foreign passports. The election is expected to be the freest in decades, but polls won't be held in areas wracked by ethnic violence and many Muslims, including more than 1 million ethnic Rohingya who are denied citizenship, aren't eligible to vote. Photographs by Brent Lewin for Bloomberg