Myint Swe

Political career Chief Minister of Yangon Region Myint was nominated as chief-minister of the Yangon Region after the general election by President Thein Sein. He was tipped to be nominated to become Vice President of Burma after Tin Aung Myint Oo's resignation in 2012, but did not qualify per the Constitution of Burma, as his son-in-law was an Australian citizen at the time.

Vice Presidency On 11 March 2016, military-appointed MPs of the Assembly of the Union nominated him as one of the Vice Presidents of Myanmar. He received 213 votes on 15 March 2016 and became First Vice President of Htin Kyaw's Cabinet. He was sworn in on 30 March 2016.

Acting President On 21 March 2018, following the sudden resignation of Htin Kyaw as President of Myanmar, Myint Swe was sworn in as acting president under the Constitution of Myanmar, which also called for the Assembly to select a new president within seven days of Htin Kyaw's resignation.

On 1 February 2021, President Win Myint was removed from office in a coup and detained by the Tatmadaw (Myanmar's military), so Myint Swe would become Acting President, allowing him to call a meeting of the military-controlled National Defence and Security Council (NDSC) and declare a state of emergency and formally transfer power to coup leader Min Aung Hlaing. The military maintains that Myint Swe constitutionally assumed the presidency because the constitution states the first vice president becomes acting president if the presidency becomes vacant due to "resignation, death, permanent disability or any other cause". However, according to the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, this interpretation is questionable as the military had no legal authority to detain Win Myint and the constitution provides for an impeachment and removal process which was not followed.

Myint extended the state of emergency five times by six month periods at meetings of the NSDC, but did not otherwise participate in government. The third extension was especially controversial because the constitution says up to two extensions are "normally" allowed. According to some international observers such as the International Crisis Group, the third extension was unconstitutional. Myint Swe justified the extension due to what he said are "extraordinary circumstances". The junta-packed Constitutional Tribunal affirmed his interpretation.

In a November 2023 meeting of the NSDC, Myint Swe warned that the country was at risk of being "split into various parts" amid the civil war.

On 18 July 2024, state media in Myanmar reported that Myint Swe was suffering from neurological disorders and peripheral neuropathy disease, adding that he had been receiving medical treatment since early in 2024 and was unable to eat or carry out other basic functions. On 22 July 2024, he took medical leave and temporarily transferred his NDSC-related duties as president to Min Aung Hlaing on an acting basis, while remaining in office. Myint Swe was of Mon descent.

On 7 August 2025, Myint Swe died at a military hospital in Naypyitaw, following a long illness involving neurological disorders and peripheral neuropathy. He was 74. The government announced that he would be accorded a state funeral and that five days of national mourning from 7 to 11 August would be observed.