Thousands of Syrian expatriates across the globe have been voting in the country’s presidential elections. <br /><br />In Lebanon, with a population of 1.1 million Syrians, tens of thousands of supporters of President Bashar al-Assad marched to their country’s embassy to cast their ballots.<br /><br />Polling won’t be taking place in Syria until June 3. <br /><br />“We’re here to vote,” said Haji Hussein, a refugee from Damascus. “We hope to see more reforms and want to elect a president who will be a good leader for Syria.”<br /><br />In the Jordanian capital, Amman, Syrians voted for one of the three candidates in the election: Hassan bin Abdullah al-Nouri, a lawmaker from Damascus; Maher Abdul-Hafiz Hajjar, a policymaker from the northern city of Aleppo and President Bashar al-Assad.<br /><br />Syrian opposition supporters protested outside the country’s embassy calling it “fraudulent.”<br /><br />“I didn’t vote today because the result has already been decided,” explained Hussein al-Shoraiky, an opponent of President Bashar al-Assad. “The Syrian elections won’t change the current situation. A win for him will permit the butcher to cause more bloodshed.”<br /><br />Voting has been taking place in Syrian embassies and consulates abroad. But several European countries including France, UK, Belgium and Germany have not permitted the election.
