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PoliticsSyria

Why is Syria holding elections without public voting?

01:58

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Mohamad Chreyteh in Damascus, Syria
October 5, 2025

Syria is holding its first parliamentary elections since the fall of dictator Bashar Assad, but Syrians aren't voting directly for the candidates standing for office. So how is this election supposed to work? DW's Mohamad Chreyteh explains.

Syria is holding its first parliamentary elections since the fall of the Assad regime, but most citizens won't vote. With millions displaced and lacking documents, the interim government is using an indirect system. Electoral colleges, formed by regional committees, will elect 140 of 210 assembly members; the president appoints the rest. Due to instability, no voting is held in the governorates of Sweida, Raqqa and Hasakah.