(CNN) – Turkey’s Supreme Electoral Council announced that a second round of presidential elections will be held on May 28 after candidates failed to gain more than 50% of the vote in Sunday’s election campaign.
The candidates in direct confrontation are the country’s current president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and the main opposition figure, Kemal Kilicdaroglu. Both had the highest percentage of votes in the elections, with Erdogan closer to 50%, but neither exceeded that threshold, requiring a second ballot to determine the winner. A third candidate, Sinan Ogan, fell far behind in the campaign.
Earlier, state-run Anadolu News Agency reported predictions based on 97.95% of the votes counted, according to which Erdogan received 49.34% of the vote, compared to Kilicdaroglu’s 44.99%.
While the run-off election is already secured, the final official results of Turkey’s elections will be announced this Friday, said Turkey’s Supreme Electoral Council Chairman Ahmet Yener.
This Sunday’s elections are Erdogan’s biggest challenge yet. The Turkish head of state is facing financial difficulties and criticizes the fact that the effects of the devastating earthquake on February 6 were exacerbated by lax construction controls and chaotic rescue measures.
His main opponent is Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kilicdaroglu, who represents an electoral coalition of six opposition parties. For the first time, the Turkish opposition was united around a single candidate.