11 million people - half of Syria's population - are on the run.

According to the UN refugee agency UNHCR, almost half of them have fled to other countries and cannot vote. In addition, large parts of the country are out of the regime's control, says Aron Lund, Syrian expert and analyst at the American think tank The Century Foundation.

- Internally displaced persons can vote in another province, but in rebel-controlled areas it will not be possible to vote at all. In practice, it is an election organized by the government as a demonstration of strength: that they can still organize elections, that all institutions chew on as they should, that "we run as before".

In the 2016 parliamentary elections, President Bashar al-Assad's Baath party and its allies, as expected, won a clear majority of seats in parliament. The election, which the opposition called a "scam", was not recognized by the UN and was heavily criticized by the outside world.

"Puppet Parties"

During the second year of the civil war, a referendum was held in which the Syrians voted for a new constitution. The constitutional amendment led to a transition to a multi-party system that would replace Syria's half-century-long one-party rule. Nice on paper - but no more than that, says Aron Lund.

- In theory, the Syrians can vote for parties other than al-Assad, but it will not affect the election in any direction. Parliament consists of a small number of small parties, allied to al-Assad's Baath party, which act as a kind of puppet party.

Finding out what the Syrian people really think is virtually impossible.

- There are no opinion polls and no real elections. Even before the war, peaceful opposition and demonstrations were fought hard, but now we are talking about completely different figures. It is clear that many are opposed to al-Assad and that many support him, but it is not known which opinion is the biggest. The war has completely brutalized the situation.

Presidential election next year

Next year, Syria will hold presidential elections for the first time since 2014. That it would end with something other than another seven-year term of office for President Bashar al-Assad is very incredible, says Lund.

- The presidential election will probably be even more theater than this election.