Syria sets first post-Assad parliamentary elections for Oct. 5

Sherif Tarek, Bloomberg News on Sep 21, 2025

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Syria scheduled its first parliamentary elections since the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad for Oct. 5, as its new leaders seek to rebuild state institutions amid diplomatic efforts to stabilize the war-battered country.

Voting for members of the People’s Assembly will take place across all electoral districts, Syria’s state-run news agency Sana reported, citing the election committee.

The ballot was initially expected to be held in September and exclude the Druze-majority southern province of Suwayda, where sectarian violence erupted in July, as well as northern Raqqa and al-Hasakah, both partially controlled by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces.

Syria, the U.S. and Jordan agreed last week to implement a road map to maintain peace in Suwayda, including an independent investigation into the clashes between the Druze and Sunni Bedouin tribes.

Syria’s government is also in U.S.-mediated talks to defuse tension with Israel, which responded to the violence in Suwayda — and a call for help from the Druze — with airstrikes in the province and Damascus, Syria’s capital.

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is a former al-Qaeda commander whose Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham group led the ouster of Assad. While distancing himself from extremist doctrines, he’s treated with suspicion by Israel and Syria’s minorities.

In March, Sharaa and SDF head Mazloum Abdi agreed to integrate the Kurdish-led armed group into state institutions and put resources in northeastern Syria under state control. Tensions between both sides in recent months cast doubt on whether the agreement will take effect this year as planned.

The parliamentary election is part of a plan that saw Sharaa appointed as president, the parliament dissolved and the 2012 constitution nullified in January. The new parliament will comprise 210 members, a third of them appointed by the president.