On 22 February 2016, President Bashar al-Assad issued a decree calling elections to the People's Assembly for 13 April. The elections were held during the ongoing civil war that began in late 2011. Elections took place with talks, led by the United Nations, on a possible political transition, including the possibility of a new constitution and presidential and parliamentary elections by September 2017.

Opposition forces called for a boycott of the 2016 elections, accusing the government of using the vote to gain leverage in the peace talks. The High Negotiations Committee, the main opposition force in exile, termed the vote "illegitimate".

The National Unity alliance, supporting President al-Assad and his Baath Party, won 200 seats in the 250-member People's Assembly. Many candidates reportedly focused on security issues. On 2 May, the President issued a decree naming winners of parliamentary elections.

Elections did not take place in Raqa and Idlib provinces, which are controlled by the so-called Islamic State and the Al-Qaeda-linked Al-Nusra Front. Amid the violence, fewer Syrians registered to vote in 2016: 8.8 million, down from 10.1 million in 2012. Over 140,000 refugees returned to the country in order to vote. According to the Higher Judicial Committee for Elections, turnout in 2016 was 57.56%, up from 51.26 % in 2012.