The People's Assembly (Arabic: مَجْلِسُ الشَّعْبِ‎, Majlis al-Sha'ab) is Syria's legislative authority. It has 250 members elected for a four-year term in 15 multi-seat constituencies. There are two main political fronts; the National Progressive Front and Popular Front for Change and Liberation. The 2012 elections, held on 7 May, resulted in a new parliament that, for the first time in four decades, is based on a multi-party system. In 1938, Fares Al-Khoury became the first Christian to be elected Speaker.In 2016 Hadiya Khalaf Abbas, Ph.D., representing Deir Ezzor since 2003, became the first woman elected to be the Speaker. In 2017, Hammouda Sabbagh became the first Orthodox Christian to have held the post.