President of Syria

President of the
Syrian Arab Republic

Incumbent
Bashar al-Assad
since 17 July 2000
Residence People's Palace & Tishreen Palace, Damascus
Term length Seven years, renewable once
Inaugural holder Shukri al-Quwatli
Formation 17 April 1946
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
Syria

Politics portal

The President of Syria is the head of state of the Syrian Arab Republic. He is vested with sweeping powers that may be delegated, at his sole discretion, to his Vice Presidents. He appoints and dismisses the Prime Minister and other members of the Council of Ministers (the cabinet) and military officers.[1]

Selection process

Eligibility

The Constitution of Syria allows the President to run for a 7-year term, which can be renewed once as of the 2012 constitution. The conditions required to be candidate at the presidential election are the following:

  1. A candidate must be Muslim
  2. A candidate must have the support of no less than 35 members of the parliament
  3. A candidate must be 34 years old or older
  4. A candidate must have lived in Syria for 10 years before the election
  5. A candidate must be Syrian by birth, of parents who are Syrians by birth
  6. A candidate must not be married to a non-Syrian spouse

Powers

Apart from executive authority relating to a wide range of governmental functions including foreign affairs, the president has the right to dissolve the People's Council, in which case a new council must be elected within ninety days from the date of dissolution.

List of Presidents

Latest election

Candidate Party Votes %
Bashar al-AssadBa'ath Party 10,319,723 88.7
Hassan al-NouriNIACS500,2794.3
Maher HajjarIndependent372,3013.2
Invalid/blank votes 442,108 3.8
Total11,634,412100
Registered votes/turnout15,845,575 73.42
Source: SANA , SANA

References

  1. ↑ "The President and the Cabinet"