Turkey headed for runoff in presidential race as Erdogan outperforms

Ankara: Turkey’s presidential election appeared to be heading for a runoff on Monday, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pulling ahead of his main rival but missing out on an outright victory that would extend his increasingly authoritarian rule into a third decade. The vote was being closely watched to see whether the strategically located NATO country, which has a coast on the Black Sea to the north and neighbors Iran, Iraq and Syria to the south, remains under the tight grip of the president or becomes more democratic. course envisaged by his main rival Kemal Kılıkdaroğlu.

While Erdogan has ruled for 20 years, opinion polls suggested his run could be over amid economic turmoil, a crisis of living conditions and criticism over the government’s response to the February earthquake, which killed more than 50,000. More people were killed.

Western countries and foreign investors were particularly interested in the outcome due to Erdogan’s unorthodox leadership of the economy and successful efforts to place Turkey at the center of international negotiations, including with Ukraine.

With 99.4 percent of domestic votes and 84 percent of foreign votes counted, Erdogan had 49.4 percent, with Kilicdaroglu, 45 percent, Ahmet Yener, head of the Supreme Electoral Board, told reporters. A third candidate, nationalist politician Sinan Ogan, received 5.2 percent.

Erdogan, 69, told supporters early Monday that he could still win. He said, however, that he would respect the country’s decision if the race ended on 28 May, as his coalition looked set to retain its majority in parliament.

Opinion polls for Sunday’s vote had given Kilicdaroglu, the joint candidate of the six-party opposition coalition, a slight lead over Erdogan, who has governed Turkey as prime minister or president since 2003. Kilicdaroglu expressed hope for a second round. Victory.

We will definitely win the second round … and bring democracy, 74-year-old Kilikdaroglu said, adding that Erdogan has lost the trust of a nation that is now demanding change. Ogan has not said who he would support if the election goes to a second round. He is believed to have been supported by voters seeking change after two decades under Erdogan, but unconvinced by the ability of the six-party coalition led by Kilicdaroglu to govern.

Election results showed a coalition led by Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party looked likely to retain its majority in the 600-seat parliament, although the assembly voted to change its system following a referendum to change the country’s system of governance. Has lost most of the legislative power. An acting presidency narrowly passed in 2017. Erdogan’s ruling party’s coalition was hovering around 49.3 percent, while Kilicdaroglu’s Nation coalition had around 35.2 percent and the pro-Kurdish party support was above 10 percent, Anadolu news agency said.

The fact that Erdogan held on to his majority increases his chances of winning a second round of votes, with more voters likely to support Erdogan to avoid a divided government. As in previous years, Erdogan led a highly divisive campaign. He portrayed Kilicdaroglu, who had gained the support of the country’s pro-Kurdish party, as colluding with terrorists and supporting what he called LGBTQ rights.

To woo voters hard-hit by inflation, he raised salaries and pensions and subsidized electricity and gas bills, while showcasing Turkey’s domestic defense industry and infrastructure projects.

Kilicdaroglu, for his part, campaigned on promises of reversing free speech and other forms of democratic backsliding, as well as promises to repair an economy battered by high inflation and currency devaluation. Erdogan said that the election results have not been finalized, does not change the fact that the nation has chosen us.

Results reported by the state-run Anadolu Agency showed Erdogan’s party dominating the quake-hit region, winning 10 out of 11 provinces despite criticism of Erdogan’s government’s slow and anemic response to the 7.8-magnitude earthquake. . Lax implementation of building codes is believed to have contributed to the casualties and devastation in 11 southern provinces.

Turkey’s conservative heartland voted overwhelmingly for the ruling party, with Kilikdaroglu’s main opposition winning most of the coastal provinces in the west and south. The YSP, a pro-Kurdish Green Left party, won mainly Kurdish provinces in the southeast.

More than 64 million people, including overseas voters, were eligible to vote, and approximately 89 percent voted. This year marks 100 years since Turkey was founded as a republic, a modern, secular state born on the ashes of the Ottoman Empire.

Voter turnout in Turkey is traditionally strong, despite government suppression of freedom of expression and assembly, and especially since the 2016 coup attempt. Erdogan blamed the failed coup on followers of a former ally, cleric Fethullah Gülen, and launched a massive crackdown on civil servants with alleged ties to Gülen and pro-Kurdish politicians.

Erdogan, along with the United Nations, helped mediate an agreement with Ukraine and Russia that allowed Ukrainian grain to reach the rest of the world from Black Sea ports despite Russia’s war in Ukraine. The agreement, which is implemented by an Istanbul-based center, is due to expire in a few days, and Turkey hosted talks last week to keep it alive.

But Erdogan has also blocked Sweden’s quest to join NATO, arguing that the nation has been too lenient towards followers of the US-based cleric and members of pro-Kurdish groups Turkey considers national security threats. Is. Critics say the president’s heavy-handed style is to blame for the painful cost-of-living crisis. The latest official figures put inflation at around 44 per cent, down from a high of around 86 per cent.

The cost of vegetables became an election issue for the opposition, which used the onion as a symbol. Contrary to mainstream economic thinking, Erdogan argues that high interest rates fuel inflation, and has pressured the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey to lower its key rate several times.