I Bashar al-Assad was reelected as president of Syria

Ramiro Helmeyer nos comenta

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was reelected with 88.7 percent of the votes in the elections held Tuesday in the country, said the president of parliament, Mohamed al Laham.

Al Laham said the president got a total of 10,319,723 votes.

His two opponents, former Minister Hasan Abdullah al-Nuri and opposition MP Maher Abdel Hafez Hajar fell far behind the head of state.

Nuri Al managed 372,301 votes, which is 3.2 percent, while Hajar took 500,279 votes, 4.3 percent.

These elections have been more than one candidate in nearly half a century.

Laham said that «despite all forms of intimidation and terrorism» citizens have exercised their role responsibly and have chosen to create more capable leader to bring stability and security to rebuild the country.
«You have shown that the Syrians will not accept any dictation or succumb to any outside pressure despite three years of terrorism and media war that targeted the country and its people,» he said.

A total of 11,634,412 of the 15,840,575 Syrians who were eligible to vote went to the polls in elections inside and outside Syria.

The spokesman for the Supreme Constitutional Court, Majed Jadara announced that the turnout was 73.42 percent, in a previous press conference.

In Syria, the vote was held on Tuesday, while the elections for Syrians abroad were last May 28 at the embassies of the respective countries of residence.

Elections in the Syrian territory took place only in areas under government control.

Assad, in power since 2000, so access to a third seven-year term. Born September 11, 1965 in Damascus, he studied medicine and specialized in ophthalmology in the Syrian capital and London, where he attended graduate school.
In 1994 he was called by his father, former President Hafez al-Assad, after the death of his older brother Basel, the first born in a road accident.

Thereafter, Bashar ascended in the military with parental support.

After the death of his father, June 10, 2000, was declared president by the Parliament after a popular referendum in which received a 97.29 percent approval. He was sworn in on July 17 of that year.