Vote counting began Sunday evening in Syria following the close of polls in the country’s first parliamentary elections since the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime.
"Votes are being counted after polls closed in all provinces," Nawar Najmeh, a spokesman of the Higher Committee for the People's Assembly Elections, said in comments carried by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).
The polls closed after the electoral commission extended voting hours in several major cities, including Damascus.
Syrian voters cast ballot on Sunday to elect two-thirds of the seats of People's Assembly (parliament), in the first polls since Assad's fall last December.
A total of 1,578 candidates competed for 210 seats in the assembly, with women making up 14% of the candidates.
