2025 Syrian parliamentary election

The 2025 Syrian parliamentary election is scheduled to take place in late August 2025 to elect 100 of the 150 members of the People's Assembly of Syria, the country’s national legislature. The election will be the first held since the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024 and is being conducted under the authority of the Syrian transitional government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Unlike previous elections in Syria, the 2025 election will be held under a provisional, indirect electoral system. Of the 150 seats, 100 members of the People's Assembly (MPAs) will be filled through a district-based electoral college system,^[1] with MPAs selected by local committees composed of experts and community figures. The remaining 50 MPAs will be appointed directly by the president, with no seats being elected by direct popular vote.^[2]

The People’s Assembly of Syria is the country’s unicameral legislature. Under previous governments, including that of Bashar al-Assad, the Assembly was often viewed as little more than a rubber-stamp legislature, passing legislation that aligned with the ruling Ba'ath Party's interests.^[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.^[4] 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.^[5][6][7][8] The 11-member committee is responsible for overseeing the formation of electoral sub-committees, which will elect two-thirds of the MPAs.^[9]

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said that there was a lack of infrastructure to allow for direct election,^[10] 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,^[11] meaning that the indirect system was 'logical' until the infrastructure for direct elections could be established,^[2] which could take up to four years to organise.^[12]

The 2025 elections are being held under a temporary electoral system. According to the Higher Committee, the People’s Assembly will comprise 150 MPAs, with 100 MPAs being indirectly elected and 50 MPAs being appointed by the President of Syria.

The temporary electoral framework replaces direct elections, used under the former regime, with an indirect system. Instead of direct votes, subcommittees will form local electoral colleges, which in turn will choose MPAs. 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).

Each governorate's electoral subcommittee will nominate 30-50 people per district, forming a local electoral college, from which a single parliamentary representative will be elected. There are 65 administrative districts of Syria, and 14 subcommittees will be formed, one per governorate.

The committee has 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. If elections in those regions are not feasible, the committee may work with local dignitaries and notables to ensure participation through indirect methods.^[2]

The 100 seats are elected on the basis of governorates, with each governorate subdivided into districts that function as constituencies. Committee member Mohammed Wali stated that "Each [governorate] has several areas, each area produces several members of parliament".^[11]

The committee has estimated that the process of electing MPAs will take 60 to 90 days to complete,^[13][14] starting in June 2025 and ending in August 2025. The election will take place on the same day across all of Syria, expected to be at the end of August.^[11]

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.^[14]

According to the committee chair, candidates must:^[2]

• be at least 25 years old,
• have a good reputation and conduct,
• not have been convicted of a dishonourable crime,
• be legally competent and not under financial restrictions.
• be a Syrian citizen for at least 10 years.

Legal experts such as Anwar al-Bunni, director of the Syrian Centre for Legal Studies and Research, have 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.^[2]

• European Union Chargé 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.^[15]
• United Nations Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Otto Pedersen, also welcomed the announcement of the formation of the Supreme Election Committee.^[16]

• 2025 Interim Constitution of Syria