Everything you need to know about Syria’s first post-Assad elections

Syria volition prime the People’s Assembly connected Sunday successful the country’s archetypal elections since the autumn of Bashar al-Assad’s authorities successful December.

The elections are a historical infinitesimal aft much than 50 years of dynastic, oppressive al-Assad regularisation and are different trial for the caller government, led by President Ahmad al-Sharaa.

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However, the electoral process has been taxable to debate.

There volition beryllium nary cosmopolitan voting. Instead, al-Sharaa volition name one-third of the assembly members, and the remainder volition beryllium chosen by electoral subcommittees.

If you’ve got questions, we’ve got answers. Here’s everything you request to cognize astir Syria’s elections:

Elections but nary nonstop voting by Syrian citizens?

Correct.

There are 210 seats successful the caller People’s Assembly, 40 seats less than nether al-Assad, and members volition service 2.5 twelvemonth terms.

Al-Sharaa volition name 70 members, and the different 140 volition beryllium voted connected by subcommittees overseen by an 11-person Supreme Committee, which was appointed by al-Sharaa.

The subcommittees are made up of astir 6,000 electors, who volition formed ballots astatine determination electoral colleges.

Syrian authorities said nary wide ballot is being held due to the fact that they don’t person reliable census information aft millions of radical were displaced by astir 14 years of war.

“There volition beryllium voting, but it volition person a constricted governmental impact,” Aron Lund, a Syria adept and chap astatine the Century International deliberation tank, told Al Jazeera.

“It is an indirect predetermination utilizing a acceptable of electors who person fundamentally been handpicked by the existent rulers. … It each takes spot successful circumstances that bash not truly let for meaningful debate, adjacent though Syria is present thankfully escaped of Assad-style censorship and constabulary authorities tactics.”

There are nary governmental parties progressive successful the elections either.

Polls opened astatine 9am (06:00 GMT) and volition adjacent astatine 5pm (14:00 GMT).

How galore candidates are running?

The Supreme Committee, appointed by al-Sharaa, approved 1,570 candidates. Those candidates are moving for the 140 seats earlier al-Sharaa appoints the past 70 assembly members.

There are nary quotas though a draught instrumentality stipulated that the electoral colleges person 20 percent practice for women, 3 percent for radical with peculiar needs and a 70-to-30 divided for professionals implicit accepted notables.

Haidar Shahin, an Alawite campaigner from the Tartous governorate, was changeable dormant connected September 30 successful his location successful Tartous by a masked man.

The government-aligned Al-Watan paper said connected Telegram that Shahin was killed by “remnants of the erstwhile regime”. Authorities said they are investigating Shahin’s killing.

Tartous was 1 of the scenes of unit successful March erstwhile al-Assad loyalists launched an insurrection that devolved into sectarian killings. Since then, Alawites said they’ve faced sectarian threats and discrimination.

Is voting happening everywhere?

No, not yet. Up to 32 of the 210 members’ seats volition stay empty.

Voting successful 3 areas was postponed by Syrian authorities who said Kurdish-controlled regions successful the northeast and the confederate portion of Suwayda, wherever warring occurred successful July and August betwixt Druze and Bedouin communities, were not acceptable for voting.

How bash Syrian radical consciousness astir the elections?

There’s positivity but besides scepticism.

Many successful Syria are inactive overjoyed by the information the al-Assad household is nary longer successful power, welcoming immoderate alternate to its brutal reign.

But immoderate Syrians told Al Jazeera that information concerns, including massacres successful coastal governorates similar Tartous, clashes successful Suwayda and different attacks connected minorities person near them distrustful of al-Sharaa’s enactment and cardinal relation successful these elections.

Still, determination is overwhelming fashionable enactment for ideology successful Syria, according to a caller canvass by the Arab Center that indicated 61 percent of Syrians favour a antiauthoritarian strategy that includes governmental pluralism and accountability.

Eight percent of respondents said they privation a strategy governed by Islamic instrumentality without parties oregon elections portion different 6 percent said they privation a governmental strategy successful which lone Islamic parties compete.

Is this conscionable a continuation of one-man rule?

Al-Sharaa is evidently the astir influential figure, by far, successful this process.

He has dominated Syrian authorities since starring the violative that overthrew al-Assad connected December 8.

Still, analysts judge the elections person worth and are not a repetition of the sham elections held nether the al-Assad regime.

“You’ll astir apt spot immoderate genuinely fashionable figures and a batch of section notables interval to the top, and that matters,” Lund said.

“Syria needs to fto section communities link to the Damascus powerfulness structure.

“I don’t deliberation this should beryllium dismissed arsenic theatrics. But it’s besides not a due predetermination successful the consciousness that it’s going to make an independently almighty legislature oregon let for contention betwixt governmental camps.”

Al-Sharaa’s centrality successful Syrian authorities is improbable to alteration aft the elections. Still, they could beryllium a archetypal measurement successful gathering a much pluralistic governmental process, analysts said.

“In fairness, I deliberation this is each beauteous emblematic for countries that person undergone a revolutionary translation similar Syria. How other would you bash it? You person to commencement somewhere,” Lund said.

“So you extremity up with thing similar this, and it’s amended than nothing.”

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has been a cardinal fig since al-Assad fled to Russia connected December 8 That seems acceptable to proceed with his power successful selecting the People’s Assembly [Jeenah Moon/Reuters]

What comes next?

The results of the elections should beryllium known by Tuesday, aft which the question volition beryllium however the People’s Assembly volition operate.

“To what grade volition this parliament beryllium allowed to signifier authorities and dependable dissonant opinions arsenic opposed to conscionable rubber-stamping laws?” Lund asked.

“Is this a archetypal measurement toward having existent elections adjacent clip around, oregon is it conscionable a box-ticking workout successful an emerging caller authoritarian order?”