December 1949 Syrian presidential election

{{Short description|none}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2026}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2026}}
{{Infobox election
| election_name =
| country = Syria
| flag_year = 1932
| type = presidential
| ongoing =
| previous_election = June 1949 Syrian presidential election
| previous_year = {{nowrap|1949 (Jun)}}
| next_election = 1950 Syrian presidential election
| next_year = 1950
| election_date = {{Start date|1949|12|14|df=y}}
| image1 = Hashim Al Atassi.jpg
| candidate1 = {{nowrap|[[Hashim al-Atassi]]}}
| party1 = People’s Party (Syria)
| electoral_vote1 = ”’89”’
| percentage1 = ”’82.4%”’
| image2 =
| candidate2 = {{nowrap|}}
| party2 =
| electoral_vote2 =
| percentage2 =
| title = [[President of Syria|President]]
| before_election = [[Sami al-Hinnawi]]<br>(”de facto”)
| before_party =
| after_election = [[Hashim al-Atassi]]
| after_party = People’s Party (Syria)
}}

Presidential elections were held in Syria on 14 December 1949, when the Syrian [[Constituent Assembly (Syria, 1949–1950)|Constituent Assembly]] elected [[Hashim al-Atassi]] as provisional Head of State by 89 votes out of 108 cast. The election followed the adoption of a [[Syrian Provisional Constitution of 1949|provisional constitution]] by the Constituent Assembly on the same day, and took place in the turbulent aftermath of two military coups earlier that year. Al-Atassi, widely known as the “Father of the Republic” and “Father of the Constitution,” was returning to the highest office for the second time, having previously served as President from 1936 to 1939.

== Background ==

On 14 August 1949, Brigadier General [[Sami al-Hinnawi]] led a [[August 1949 Syrian coup d’état|coup]] against President [[Husni al-Za’im]], who had himself come to power in a [[March 1949 Syrian coup d’état|coup]] earlier that year. On the evening of the same day, a [[Second Hashim al-Atassi government|government was formed]] under Hashim al-Atassi as Prime Minister.<ref name=”source 1″>{{cite web |title=انتخاب هاشم الأتاسي رئيساً مؤقتاً للدولة عام 1949م |url=https://syrmh.com/2021/04/25/انتخاب-هاشم-الأتاسي-رئيساً-للدولة-عام-19/ |website=التاريخ السوري المعاصر |language=ar |date=24 April 2021}}</ref>

The government oversaw a series of amendments to Syria’s electoral system, the most significant of which were: the granting of voting rights to women; the abolition of sectarian quotas in the allocation of seats; and the lowering of the voting age from twenty to eighteen years.<ref name=”source 1″/> On 21 September 1949, a decree was issued setting 5 October 1949 as the date for elections to a Constituent Assembly charged with drafting a provisional constitution.<ref name=”source 1″/>

The Constituent Assembly held its inaugural session on the morning of 12 December 1949, followed by a second session that evening, at which it considered the draft provisional constitution submitted by the government. A third session on 13 December was devoted to debating its articles.

== Election ==

Following the adoption of the provisional constitution on 14 December, Speaker [[Rushdi al-Kikhya|al-Kikhya]] announced the need to elect a Head of State. The session was briefly suspended so that the election could be held in a dedicated session.<ref name=”source 1″/><ref name=”source 2″>{{cite web |title=صحيفة 1949- الجمعية التأسيسية تنتخب هاشم الأتاسي رئيساً |url=https://syrmh.com/2021/05/24/صحيفة-1949-الجمعية-التأسيسية-تنتخب-هاشم-ا/ |website=التاريخ السوري المعاصر |language=ar |date=24 May 2021}}</ref>

After fifteen minutes, the session resumed. Three candidates stood: [[Hashim al-Atassi]], [[Rushdi al-Kikhya]], and [[Hayil al-Surur]]. Two ballot boxes were used to collect the votes of the 108 participating members. The results were as follows:<ref name=”source 1″/><ref name=”source 2″/>
[[File:Atassi 2nd inauguration Dec 1949.jpg|thumb|The second inauguration of al-Atassi on December 1949.]]

{| class=”wikitable”
! colspan=”2″ |Canditates
! Parties
! Votes
! %
|-
|{{Party color cell|People’s Party (Syria)}}
|[[Hashim al-Atassi]]
| [[People’s Party (Syria)|People’s Party]]
| align=”right” | ”’89”’
| align=”right” | ”’82.4”’
|-
|{{Party color cell|People’s Party (Syria)}}
|[[Adnan al-Atassi]]
| People’s Party
| align=”right” | 5
| align=”right” | 4.6
|-
|{{Party color cell|People’s Party (Syria)}}
|[[Rushdi al-Kikhya]]
| People’s Party
| align=”right” | 2
| align=”right” | 1.9
|-
|
| [[Hayil al-Surur]]
|
| align=”right” | 2
| align=”right” | 1.9
|-
|{{Party color cell|People’s Party (Syria)}}
|[[Faydi al-Atassi]]
| People’s Party
| align=”right” | 1
| align=”right” | 0.9
|-
| colspan=5|
|-
|colspan=3|Required majority
| align=center| 58 votes
| align=center| 50% of MPs
|-
| colspan=5|
|-
| colspan=3 | Valid votes
| align=”right” | 99
| align=”right” | 91.7
|-
| align=left colspan=3 | Blank and invalid votes
| align=”right” | 9
| align=”right” | 8.3
|- style=”font-weight:bold;”
| colspan=3 | Total
| align=”right” | 108
| align=”right” | 100
|-
| colspan=3 | Registered voters / turnout
| align=”right” | 114
| align=”right” | 94.7
|}

The five votes cast for Adnan al-Atassi, who was not a formal candidate, were a deliberate signal from a group of deputies — including [[Akram al-Hourani]] — intended to convey that Hashim al-Atassi’s real guide was his son Adnan, given the latter’s considerable influence over him.<ref name=”source 1″/>
== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{Presidents of Syria}}

[[Category:1949 elections in Asia]]
[[Category:Presidential elections in Syria]]
[[Category:Indirect elections]]