Local committees across Syria have voted to select members for a transitional parliament in the country’s first parliamentary election since the fall of Bashar al-Assad. About 6,000 voters participated in the process at venues including the National Library in Damascus, formerly the Assad National Library. The electoral commission reported that counting has begun, with final results expected soon.
The parliament will have 210 seats with a renewable 30-month mandate. One-third of the seats 70 members will be directly appointed by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who led the coalition that toppled Assad after over 13 years of civil war. The remaining two-thirds will be selected by local committees appointed by an electoral commission, itself chosen by Sharaa.
More than 1,500 candidates ran, 14 percent of whom were women. However, the Druze-majority Sweida province and Kurdish-held northeastern regions were excluded due to ongoing conflicts and remain unrepresented, leaving 32 seats vacant. Critics contend the process lacks true democratic legitimacy and consolidates power with Sharaa’s interim government. Still, some consider it a step forward after decades of dictatorship.
But because they are not under Damascus’s authority, the Druze-majority Sweida province in southern Syria, which saw sectarian violence in July, and the Kurdish-held northeast of the nation are not now included in the process.
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