Ballots are being counted while emotions run high in Myanmar, after voting ended in the country’s first openly contested national elections since 1990 on Sunday, reported the BBC. The ruling Union Solidarity Development party, which is backed by the military, is expected to lose to Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy, with a high turnout of nearly 80% indicating that the country’s people are hoping for a change in government.

While results might only be declared on Tuesday, cheering supporters gathered outside Suu Kyi’s home, waving red flags on Monday morning. In the afternoon, the Associated Press reportedthat the opposition was leading with 70 per cent of the votes. While the Nobel laureate has been barred from taking over as President should her party win, she has headlined the campaign and garnered massive popular support. When her party won the 1990 elections, the military overruled the decision and put her under house arrest. She has led protests for change since her release in 2010, Al Jazeera reported.