Unlike previous elections in Syria, the 2025 election will be held under a provisional, indirect electoral system. Of the 210 seats, 140 seats are allocated to be filled through a constituency-based electoral college system,[1] although only 131 seats are due to be elected,[2] with MPAs selected by local committees composed of experts and community figures. The remaining 70 members of the People's Assembly (MPAs) will be appointed directly by the president, with no seats being elected by direct popular vote.
Background
The People's Assembly of Syria is the country's unicameral legislature. Under previous governments, including that of Bashar al-Assad, the Assembly was characterised as "primarily a debating club",[3]rubber-stamping the president's directives.[4] Elections to the People's Assembly were by direct popular vote in multi-member constituencies, however constitutionally two-thirds of the seats automatically went to the Ba'ath Party and its allies, with the remaining seats being independents.[3]
Following the 2024 Syrian opposition offensives, political changes in Syria, and the transition to a new governance model, the People's Assembly elected in the July 2024 Syrian parliamentary election was dissolved on 29 January 2025 and replaced by an interim Legislative Council.[5] Following the adoption of the 2025 Interim Constitution of Syria, a provisional parliament called the People's Assembly was established with the president appointing one third of MPAs.[1] On 2 June 2025, Presidential Decree 66 was issued, which established the Higher Committee for People's Assembly Elections (Arabic: اللجنة العليا لانتخابات مجلس الشعب السوري).[6][7][8][9] The 11-member committee is responsible for overseeing the formation of electoral sub-committees, which will elect two-thirds of the MPAs.[10]
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said that there was a lack of infrastructure to allow for direct election,[11] and Syrian Human Rights lawyer Anwar al-Bunni said that "the absence of political work, parties, and political activism", in addition to the need to register displaced people and deceased people, as well as the Assad regime granting citizenship to large numbers of Iranian militants,[12] meaning that the indirect system was 'logical' until the infrastructure for direct elections could be established,[13] which could take up to four years to organise.[14]
Date of the election
The committee estimated in June 2025 that the process of electing MPAs will take 60 to 90 days to complete,[15][16] ending in August 2025. The election will take place on the same day across all of Syria, originally estimated to be at the end of August,[12] and the election date chosen was expected to fall between 15 and 20 September.[17] On 14 September, Tareq al-Kurdi, a member of the Higher Committee's legal committee, announced that the elections had been postponed due to the high number of applications, and that the elections were expected to take place before the end of September.[18] On 21 September, the final date was announced to be 5 October.[19]
A presidential decree was planned to be issued to set up the processes for the elections, which was done on 20 August 2025. The committee chair stated that the decree was planned to include membership conditions, campaign mechanisms, a code of conduct for voters and candidates, and provisions ensuring women's participation of at least 20%.[citation needed]
Electoral system
Legal framework
The 2025 elections are being held under a temporary electoral system, enacted by Presidential Decree 142 on 20 August 2025,[20] with practical procedures commencing on 21 August 2025.[21][bettersourceneeded]
Number of MPAs
According to the Higher Committee, the People's Assembly will comprise 210 MPAs, with 140 MPAs (two thirds) being elected and the remaining 70 MPAs (a third) being appointed by the president of Syria.[17] The Higher Committee chair emphasised that the seats appointed by the president were to be reserved for "highly skilled technocrats to fill gaps that may arise from the electoral process and ensure diverse representation".[22] Originally, 150 MPAs were planned to be seated, with 100 MPAs being elected and 50 MPAs being appointed,[13] however this was announced to have changed on 27 July 2025.
Electoral college system
The temporary electoral framework replaces direct elections, used under the former regime, with an indirect system. Instead of direct votes, subcommittees will choose delegates that form one electoral college per constituency, which in turn will choose MPAs. The number of members on each governorate's sub-committee matches the number of MPAs the governorate will elect. These sub-committees collect applications from individuals wishing to serve as delegates, who vote to elect an MPA. Most constituencies have 150 delegates, but larger constituencies will have more, such as Damascus with 450.[23] 7,000 people are electoral college members.[24]
According to the committee, this approach is intended to suit the transitional and legislative—not representative—nature of the new parliament due to the lack of infrastructure, such as reliable census data and voter registration to conduct direct elections. The aim is to select technocrats and academics: 70% of the MPAs will be academics or experts, 30% will be notable community figures (preferably with academic qualifications as well). Delegates are selected to join the electoral college by the governorate sub-committee according to 17 strict criteria. At least 20% of delegates must be women, and at least 3% must have a disability.[23]
Each governorate's electoral subcommittee will nominate around 150 people per constituency, forming a local electoral college, from which a single or few parliamentary representative will be elected. 14 subcommittees will be formed, one per governorate.[23]
The preliminary list of the members of the electoral college members was released on 24 September, allowing a one day period for objections to be submitted.[25] The final list was published on 26 September, and candidacy applications for MPAs is open between 27 and 28 September.[26]
Equality
To discuss views and proposals, the Higher Committee met with several groups including:
Syrian human rights lawyer Anwar al-Bunni also suggested that the president could appoint MPAs to counter any lost balance for marginalised groups from the election committees.[13]
Constituencies
The seats are elected by constituencies, with varying numbers of MPAs allocated to each constituency. Committee member Mohammed Wali stated that "Each [governorate] has several [constituencies], each [constituency] produces several members of parliament".[12] There are 60 constituencies.[33][23]
By governorate
Seat distribution by constituency Seat distribution by governorate
The final distribution of seats by governorate were released on 26 August 2025:[34]
Constituencies with more than 600,000 residents will elect three members for every additional 250,000 residents.[23]
Term
The committee has also estimated that MPAs will serve an expected term of five years. However, elections are supposed to be renewed after 30 months, since the term of the People's Assembly is set at 30 months in accordance with the constitutional declaration. This means that although the committee's mandate was initially conceived as a longer-term assignment, it remains subject to the legislative cycle established by the constitutional framework.[16]
Candidacy
The requirements for candidacy are that the candidate must:[35]
Have been a Syrian citizen since before 2011.
Have been registered in the civil registry within its electoral district, or be a resident for five consecutive years before 2011.
Have not have been convicted of a felony or a crime against honour, except for cases of a political or security nature.
Should not have run for president after 2011.
Have never been a member of the People's Assembly or a candidate in the post-2011 period unless defection is proven.
Have not be a supporter of the former regime and terrorist organizations in any way, and not to be an advocate of secession, division or bullying abroad.
Have not be affiliated with the armed forces or security services.
Have not be a member of the Higher Committee, subcommittees or appeals committees.
Have not be a minister, governor, deputy or assistant.
Have been committed to the provisions of the Constitutional Declaration.
Hold an accredited university degree or its equivalent for the category of competencies.
Have a high school diploma for the category of notables.
Additionally, the candidate must be chosen from amongst the members of that electoral college.[23]
Monitoring
The committee chair stated that, to maximise transparency, the election will be monitored by international organisations with the committee's coordination, having full freedom to contest lists and results.[22] EU diplomats expressed a desire to visit the sub-committees and electoral districts, especially on election day, which was welcomed by the Higher Committee.[36]
The Higher Committee additionally created an appeals sub-committee for each governorate, and for the Syrian Bar Association to appoint a lawyer for each of the constituencies as a legal observer.[33][37]
Subcommittee members took the legal oath on 3 September,[38][39] with the process of selecting electoral bodies starting on 7 September.[40]
Regional postponements
The committee expressed a desire to hold elections throughout Syria, including areas under the control of the Syrian Democratic Forces, those being the Raqqa and al-Hasakah governorates. In the event elections in those regions are not feasible, the committee said it may work with local dignitaries and notables to ensure participation through indirect methods.[13]
On 23 August the Syrian transitional government announced that elections would not be held in the Druze-controlled governorate of Suwayda and areas under the control of the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), namely Hasakah and Raqqa. The Higher Committee for People's Assembly Elections said the ballot would be delayed in all three until a "safe environment" was in place according to SANA state news agency.[41][42]
In response the AANES affirmed that the planned elections are not democratic and "do not in any way reflect the will of the Syrian people". It criticised the characterization of areas under AANES control as "unsafe" and argued that it would "justify the policy of denial" against more than five million Syrians. It called on organisations like the United Nations not to recognize these elections.[43]
However, the committee later decided to hold elections in some areas of Raqqa and Hasakah governorates. The members of their sub-committees took the legal oath on 22 September.[44][45]
Campaigning during the election
Renaming the People's Assembly
One of the ongoing discussions in the Syrian election is the future structure of the People's Assembly once the election is completed. Committee spokesperson Nawar Najma said that discussions were taking place on whether to return to "one of the Assembly’s former names, such as the House of Representatives or Parliament", due to the negative connotations by many Syrians of the name.[46]
Reactions and analysis
Individual
Syrian Human Rights lawyer Anwar al-Bunni, director of the Syrian Centre for Legal Studies and Research, has described the process as a pragmatic step given Syria's current conditions. He acknowledged the lack of infrastructure and civil documentation, and emphasized the importance of including civil society and local leadership in transitional governance structures. Al-Bunni noted that this Assembly's decisions could be subject to future review, amendment, or repeal once popular elections are feasible.[13]
Birgit Schäbler, historian and professor at the University of Erfurt and director of the Orient-Institut Beirut until 2022, said in early August 2025 that she did not expect the Druze to boycott the election, nor other minority groups, "provided the government respects their regional and local interests".[3]
However, journalist Jasim Al-Azzawi wrote for Al Jazeera English that the elections required "genuine security and reconciliation", to avoid deepening existing secretarian divides.[47]
International
European UnionChargé d'affaires for Syria, Michael Unmacht, said that the European Union welcomed the formation of the Supreme Election Committee, and that the European Union would offer its expertise in support of the transitional legislative authority.[48]
United Nations Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Otto Pedersen, also welcomed the announcement of the formation of the Supreme Election Committee.[49]
Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria: in response to the postponment of elections in the areas under AANES control, the AANES affirmed that the planned elections are not democratic and "do not in any way reflect the will of the Syrian people".[43]
1 2 140 seats were originally due to be elected, however elections in some governorates were postponed, meaning only 131 seats will be elected, and 201 seats will be filled.
↑ The majority if there are elections held in Al-Hasakah, Raqqa and Suwayda is 106 seats. When accounting for vacant seats, the majority is 101 seats
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