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Elected in 2007 and again in 2014
There is no,UN sanction calling for forceful re movement
The ones calling foul were US backed oposition- islamists and expats livung in London

I know - we wish syrian electins were just as free and fair as those in Iraq and Iran .... Places we consider leaders we support

These were fake elections. One of the problems there in my humble opinion is that Assad really does not have the support of majority. His tribe - Alawites - are 10% of the population, but they rule everything. This creates a perverse incentive for the top class to make the Alawites so hated by the others that their loyalty is guaranteed - sort of like Roman Emperors did with their Praetorian Guard. Other problem is common for all the Arab countries. They have a huge amount of young men who have nothing to look forward in life as all the places of power are taken. It is even worse in Syria as for the 90% non-Alawite youths it is a degree higher impossibility to break through just because the parents they were born to.

The USA will get blamed anyway, but that population pyramid, combined with a 10% tribe ruling over the others means there will be trouble in Syria no matter what. It will explode. The easy measures are just kicking a can a bit ahead.

Oh, and another thing. It doesn’t help that Bashar al-Assad has the charisma of a damp rag. He is an awkward looking giraffe with a stage presence worse than Jeb Bush. He was always a backup heir, and his brother could have had the presence to enact meaningful reforms, but that brother died.