Despite the rescheduling of local elections in the Autonomous Administration areas of Northern and Eastern Syria from June 11 to next August, this second date is also expected to change. Leaks obtained by "Al Arabiya.net" on Wednesday from high-level sources within the Autonomous Administration—covering parts of Aleppo and Deir ez-Zor provinces, and all of Raqqa and Al-Hasakah provinces except for two towns that Turkey managed to control in late October 2019—indicate an intention to postpone the elections.
A senior official from the Autonomous Administration stated that the parties within the administration are once again requesting the Supreme Electoral Commission for the Autonomous Administration of Northern and Eastern Syria to postpone the local elections in all of its areas to a later date, emphasizing that these elections should be held when local, regional, and international conditions are conducive for conducting them.
According to the official, the parties' request for the commission to delay the elections until favorable conditions arise results from the current situation in Syria in general and its northeastern region in particular, as Turkey is currently seeking to restore its relations with the Syrian government in Damascus and is threatening a new invasion of the area. The parties within the Autonomous Administration aim to protect their gains and curb what they refer to as the "plotters" against the administration by requesting the postponement of the elections for the second time, as noted in a leaked official document that "Al Arabiya.net" obtained a copy of.
It is worth mentioning that these local elections were initially scheduled for June 11, then postponed to August, before parties within the Autonomous Administration once again requested to delay them today, according to the previous source. The Autonomous Administration linked the initial postponement of the local elections to time constraints, coinciding with Turkish threats of a new military invasion of their regions. Additionally, the United States had previously urged the administration not to proceed with these elections, which were intended to elect mayors in the areas, through its embassy in the Syrian capital, Damascus.
