Syrian officials say President Bashar al-Assad has been reelected by a landslide. He has secured a third term in office in the middle of a civil war.
Parliamentary speaker Mohammad Jihad al-Laham announced that Assad won 88.7 percent of the vote. He will serve another seven years as president. Multiple candidates were in the running for the first time. Voting took place Tuesday, only in government-controlled areas of the country.
Syrians have endured years of a civil war, in which 160,000 people have been killed. Assad's critics say no poll during such conflict could be considered credible. The U.S. and European countries, as well as opposition forces, insisted his resignation would be a prerequisite for starting a peace process.
Assad is now expected to try to justify the continuance of his administration, and he will try to present the vote as a democratic process. Analysts say this will make it more difficult to put an end to the civil war.
◆by a landslide 圧倒的大差で
◆secure 確実とする
◆multiple 多数の、複数の
◆in the running 立候補して
◆credible 信頼できる
◆prerequisite 前提条件
◆put an end to .. ～を終わらせる
