“Late Thursday the government announced the result, claiming Assad had won 95% of the vote with a nearly 79% turnout, the Associated Press reported” – NPR.

The Syrian Civil War has left half the population exiled or displaced. It began during the Arab Spring Uprisings in 2011 and is ongoing. The Socialist Ba’ath party of Bashar al-Assad was challenged by the Free Syria Army. Assad is backed by Vlad Putin and the Russian Federation, Iran and Hezbollah. The Free Syria Army is backed by the US and Turkey. ISIL jumped into the mix attempting to take advantage of the situation to gain it’s own territory.

The recent elections were held in government controlled towns and regions. Assad was destined to win, it’s his fourth term. His father, Hafez al-Assad, was the preceding president from 1971 until 2000. I guess winning elections just runs in the family.

See Related Case Study 28 / Case Study 29 / Pretending to Be Allah