Strong support for Assad as Syrians vote in election

Associated Press

DAMASCUS, SYRIA

Against a backdrop of civil war, tens of thousands of Syrians voted in government-controlled cities and towns Tuesday to give President Bashar Assad a new seven-year mandate, with some even marking the ballots with their own blood.

The carefully choreographed election was ignored and even mocked in opposition-held areas of Syria where fighting persisted, with some rebels derisively dropping their shoes in a phony ballot box in a show of disgust. Western leaders also called it a sham.

A victory for Assad is likely to bolster his base of support at home and provide further evidence that he has no intention of relinquishing power, making a protracted conflict the likely outcome in fighting that already has lasted three years.

Fears that the rebels would rain down mortar shells on government-controlled territory did not materialize, but fighting persisted.

State-run media reported that voting closed at midnight Tuesday, and election officials began the process of checking the number of votes against lists of registered voters to ensure numbers matched. In one central Damascus voting booth, 2,196 people cast their ballots — all but two were for Assad, counted an AP reporter who watched representatives of each presidential candidate tally votes.