Recep Tayyip Erdogan greets his supporters. Photo: Portal
Turkey’s Supreme Electoral Committee (YSK, the Turkish acronym) this Sunday announced the first results of parliamentary elections in which the country voted to elect its new president and renew 600 seats in the Grand National Assembly.
Incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan voted with 97.55% of the votes countedwho is the candidate of the ruling People’s Alliance coalition, which includes his Justice and Development Party (AKP). 49.35% of the votesS
The opponent in turn Kemal KilicdaroğluCandidate of the Alianza de la Nación and leader of the historical Republican People’s Party (CHP). 44.97%.
Candidate Muharrem Ince, whose votes count as valid despite his withdrawal from the election, gets 0.46% while Sinan Ogan of the ATA Alliance stays at 5.30%.
As the near-complete results show that none of the candidates received 50% of the required votes, there will be a second ballot, scheduled for May 28th. The winning candidate will rule the nation for the next five years.
More than 64.1 million voters both in Turkey and abroad attended the polling day, which began at 8:00 am, including some 4.9 million young people who were voting for the first time.
The head of the Supreme Electoral Body, Ahmet Yener, pointed out that there were no situations throughout the day that could have a “negative” impact on the results. So far, no negative situation has been reflected in our Management Board.
He also stressed that there was “no interruption or delay in rolling out election data.” “Our data is also immediately shared with political parties,” he added.
President Erdogan tweeted that the elections took place “in the form of a great party of democracy with peace and tranquillity,” which he sees as “a reflection of his country’s democratic maturity.”
“I would like to ask my colleagues and staff not to leave the polling stations under any circumstances until the results are officially known,” the President wrote.
A total of 191,885 ballot boxes in 973 counties and 1,094 electoral commissions across the country were activated for these elections, Anadolu Agency reports. Election centers in 73 countries and 156 diplomatic missions have also been set up for the more than 3.4 million voters living abroad.
On the other hand, the Supreme Electoral Committee (YSK) took a series of measures to ensure security in the 11 provinces devastated by the earthquake in early February.
Erdoğan’s rivals
Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Kemal Kilicdaroglu. Photo: Agencies
In addition to Erdogan, who is running for re-election from the ruling People’s Alliance (four parties), which includes his Justice and Development Party (AKP, in Turkish), three other candidates are running, with Kemal Kilicdaroglu being the only one to do so according to the polls, he is capable of taking over the presidency. The centre-left politician from the Republican People’s Party (CHP), founded by the first President of the Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, ran in the elections as the Nation Alliance (6 parties) candidate.
The third candidate on the list is Sinan Ogan, who ran for the ATA Alliance and finished last in the polls leading up to Election Day for the presidency.
Meanwhile, centre-left candidate Muharrem Ince (Memleket party) announced Thursday that he was withdrawing his candidacy after denouncing being the victim of a smear campaign against him.
However, Ince’s name appears on the ballot and votes for his candidacy Yes, they will be considered validas the head of the electoral body, Ahmet Yener, clarified.
legislation
Elections in Turkiye’. Photo: Agencies
24 parties and 151 independent candidates are now taking part in the parliamentary elections. In order to achieve a majority, the political forces must win at least 301 seats.
Voting intention polls indicated that Erdogan’s People’s Alliance, Kilicdaroglu’s Alliance of the Nation and the Alliance for Jobs and Freedom would break the 7 percent mark.
Likewise, the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), which represents ethnic interests such as those of the Kurds, would also have opportunities to enter the chamber, although it does not participate independently in parliaments as it is on the Green Left list. and to the Good Party (IYI).
(Taken from RT in Spanish)