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Syria - 2014 Election

Syria's government announced 21 April 2014 that presidential elections would be held June 3, giving President Assad the chance to win a third seven-year term in office. The opposition immediately dismissed the election as a farce. Assad had been in power since 2000 when he took office following the death of his father, who had ruled Syria for 30 years. The president won his second term in 2007, taking 97 percent of the vote in an election boycotted by the opposition and one in which he was the only candidate on the ballot.

As expected, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad won a third seven-year term in office, with a reported 89 percent of the vote. Voting took place in parts of Syria controlled by the government, but was boycotted by opposition groups in areas they control. Syrian President Bashar al Assad took the oath of office 16 July 2014 for a third seven year term in office, amid a three-year-old civil war across much of the country. Unlike his two previous ceremonies, President Assad took the oath of office at the presidential palace, rather than in front of parliament. Several analysts suggest the move was made for security reasons.

The process was neither free nor fair by international standards. Voters faced intimidation by security elements, and the regime forcibly transported state employees in Damascus to polling centers, according to observers and the media. Media reports described low overall voter turnout, even among those in relatively stable areas with access to polling stations. Only voters in regime-controlled territory, certain refugee areas, and refugees who left the country after obtaining official permission were entitled to vote. According to a June 3 report of Human Rights First, Hizballah threatened Syrian refugees if they did not vote for Asad. Security forces increased security measures in Damascus and surrounding areas under government control to maximize voter turnout. Nonetheless, violence continued throughout the country, and some armed opposition groups fired missiles at government-controlled areas during the voting period.