President of Syria | |
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رئيس سوريا | |
![]() State Seal of Syria | |
Executive branch of the Syrian Government | |
Style | Mr. President (informal) His Excellency (diplomatic) |
Status | |
Member of | |
Residence | Presidential Palace |
Seat | Damascus, Syria |
Appointer | Popular vote |
Inaugural holder | Subhi Barakat (French Mandate) Shukri al-Quwatli (current constitution) |
Formation | 17 April 1946 |
Deputy | Vice President |
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The president of Syria (Arabic : رئيس سوريا, romanized: Raʾīs Sūriyā) is the head of state of Syria. The president is vested with sweeping powers that may be delegated, at his sole discretion, to his vice presidents. The president appoints and dismisses the prime minister and other members of the Council of Ministers (the cabinet) and military officers. [1]
The position became vacant on 8 December 2024, when Bashar al-Assad was overthrown following the success of the 2024 Syrian opposition offensives. [2] The duties of the head of state were conducted by a transitional government led by Mohammed al-Bashir in the role of prime minister. Ahmed al-Sharaa was named transitional president on 29 January 2025, after having acted as the de facto leader following the fall of the Assad regime. [3] [4]
Article 88 of the 2012 constitution states that the president serves a seven-year term and "can be elected for only one more successive term." [5] [6] Article 155 states that Article 88 applies to the president "as of the next presidential elections." [5]
Article 84 of Syria's 2012 constitution requires that candidates for the presidency must: [5]
Further eligibility requirements in the 2012 constitution include: [5]
The President of Syria is constitutionally responsible for the following: [7]
The president of Syria can be removed from the position under the following circumstances: [7]
On 31 January 1973, Hafez al-Assad implemented a new constitution, which led to a national crisis. Unlike previous constitutions, this one did not require that the president of Syria must be a Muslim, leading to fierce demonstrations in Hama, Homs and Aleppo. [8] The main objection to the constitution from demonstrators was that Islam was not specified as the state religion. [9] In response to riots, the Syrian Constitution of 1973 was amended to stipulate that Islam was the religion of the president. [9]
A new constitution was approved in February 2012 after the start of the Syrian revolution. [10]
After the fall of the Assad regime, The 2012 constitution was formally abolished by the interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa on 29 January 2025, adding that he would issue a "constitutional declaration" to serve as a "legal reference" pending the promulgation of a new constitution. [11]
Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Bashar al-Assad | Ba'ath Party | 13,540,860 | 95.19 | |
Mahmoud Ahmad Marei | Democratic Arab Socialist Union | 470,276 | 3.31 | |
Abdullah Sallum Abdullah | Socialist Unionist Party | 213,968 | 1.50 | |
Total | 14,225,104 | 100.00 | ||
Valid votes | 14,225,104 | 99.90 | ||
Invalid/blank votes | 14,036 | 0.10 | ||
Total votes | 14,239,140 | 100.00 | ||
Registered voters/turnout | 18,107,109 | 78.64 | ||
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency [12] |