Maher Abd Al-Hafiz Hajjar (born 1968) is a Syrian politician, MP for
Aleppo for the opposition
People's Will Party
The People's Will Party ( ar, حزب الإرادة الشعبية, translit=Ḥizb al-ʾIrāda aš-Šaʿbiyya) is a political party in Syria.
History
In 2000, shortly after the convention of the 9th Congress of the Syrian Communist Party, 80% ...
and a candidate for the
2014 Syrian presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Syria on 3 June 2014. There is a scholarly consensus that the elections were not democratic. The result was a landslide victory for Bashar al-Assad, who received over 90% of the valid votes. He was sworn in ...
.
Hajjar was born in Aleppo in 1968 into a prominent
Sunni Muslim family of religious teachers. He graduated from
Aleppo University
University of Aleppo ( ar, جَامِعَة حَلَب, Jāmiʿat Ḥalab, also called Aleppo University) is a public university located in Aleppo, Syria. It is the second largest university in Syria after the University of Damascus.
During 20 ...
with a diploma in Linguistic Studies. He joined the
Syrian Communist Party in 1984 and when the party split in 2000 he joined
Qadri Jamil
Qadri Jamil ( ar, قدري جميل) is a Syrian politician, media editor and economist. He is one of the top leaders of the People's Will Party and the Popular Front for Change and Liberation,[People's Will Party
The People's Will Party ( ar, حزب الإرادة الشعبية, translit=Ḥizb al-ʾIrāda aš-Šaʿbiyya) is a political party in Syria.
History
In 2000, shortly after the convention of the 9th Congress of the Syrian Communist Party, 80% ...]
. He formed the party's branch in the city of Aleppo and became secretary of the party's council. He stood as an independent in the
2007 parliamentary election but failed to get elected. He stood again in the
2012 parliamentary election. This election took place during the
Syrian Civil War after the
Constitution of Syria
The current Constitution of the Syrian Arab Republic was adopted on 26 February 2012, replacing one that had been in force since 13 March 1973. The current constitution delineates the basic function of that state's government. Among other things, ...
had
been amended to remove reference to the leadership of the
Ba'ath Party. He was elected to the
People's Council of Syria as one of only 5 of 250 MPs that were not part of the ruling
National Progressive Front.
He was nominated as one of only three candidates for the
2014 Syrian presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Syria on 3 June 2014. There is a scholarly consensus that the elections were not democratic. The result was a landslide victory for Bashar al-Assad, who received over 90% of the valid votes. He was sworn in ...
running against President
Bashar al-Assad. The armed opposition described it as just an attempt "''to give legitimacy''" to the election and that Hajjar had been persuaded to stand by the Syrian security services. Given that the
Constitution of Syria
The current Constitution of the Syrian Arab Republic was adopted on 26 February 2012, replacing one that had been in force since 13 March 1973. The current constitution delineates the basic function of that state's government. Among other things, ...
requires at least 35 MPs to nominate a presidential candidate, nearly all of his nominations must have come from either independents or MPs from the ruling
National Progressive Front. After his nomination, the People's Will Party distanced themselves party from Hajjar, claiming that Hajjar was no longer a member of either the party or the Popular Front for Liberation and Change and that "''Hajjar represented only himself''".
تصريح ناطق رسمي باسم حزب الإرادة الشعبية (Ar)
, ''Kassioun'', 27 April 2014
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hajjar, Maher
Living people
Syrian Communist Party politicians
1968 births
People's Will Party politicians
Members of the People's Assembly of Syria
Syrian Sunni Muslims
People from Aleppo
University of Aleppo alumni