Description: The country held its first post – Assad parliamentary elections where up to two thirds of Syria’s People’s Assembly (Parliament) would be chosen through public voting. The voting was conceptualized as indirect, since most of the information regarding the population in the country is outdated while candidates were chosen through electoral colleges which are expected to deliver around 140 candidates in Syria’s parliament. President Ahmed Al Sharaa would choose the remaining 70 parliamentary representatives after the public voting process is finished. The transitional Syrian government also stated that elections won’t be held in the cities of Suweyda, Raqqah and Hassakeh, citing security reasons since earlier this year sectarian violence erupted claiming more than 1 thousand lives between Druze militants and Sunni Bedouins.
Impact: Syria’s first electoral process is expected to test the government’s resolve regarding several domestic disputes such as ethnic and political inclusivity, the outreach of the President’s power and the reflection of the elected officials on the wider socio – economic sector in the country. The exclusion of other cities where the Druze and the Kurds are the ethnic majority, coupled with practices related to Syria’s previous constitution, such as the President’s selection of 70 ministers of parliament, cast doubt on the transparency of the process and could be exploited by Sharaa’s inner political and military circle to further seize power in the war – thorn country. The elections by themselves represent some form of reformation and restructuring, however, no significant results are expected as the process only further emphasizes the present danger of ethnic and political divisions within the country.