In Turkey, more than 60 million voters go to the polls for presidential and parliamentary elections. It promises to be a head-to-head contest between incumbent Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of the AK Party and opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu of the centre-left Republican People’s Party (CHP).
Kilicdaroglu was presented as a joint candidate by six opposition parties. The six disagree on many points, but have united in the hope of defeating Erdogan. Erdogan has been in power for 20 years, first as prime minister and since 2014 as president. Independent Nationalist presidential candidate Sinan Ogan is also in the running, but is not seen as a contender.
Abroad
If no one can support more than 50% of voters, a second round of voting will follow on May 28. 3.4 million Turks abroad were able to vote earlier. In the Netherlands, this was possible in Amsterdam, The Hague, Deventer and Eindhoven.
According to most polls, Erdogan is narrowly behind Kilicdaroglu. Even if he himself says he expects to be re-elected. If not, he promises to hand over power peacefully.
“Not Free, Not Fair”
Member of Parliament Farah Karimi (GroenLinks) leads the International Election Observation Mission of the Organization for Security and Co-operation (OSCE) Parliamentary Assembly during the elections. In the run-up to elections, he says, there have already been several signs that they are not entirely free and fair. “This is a big deal,” he says.
As an example, he cites earthquakes in the country, which displaced millions of Turks earlier this year. Only around 300,000 people have since registered in another constituency. “We don’t have exact numbers of displaced people, but there are many more,” Karimi says.
Turks must be residents of the area they wish to vote in. “If the displaced people want to exercise their right to vote after the earthquake, they have to go back to the earthquake-affected areas and the government has not provided any facilities to do so,” Karimi said. “Indeed, it is therefore impossible for hundreds of thousands to exercise their right to vote.” The day after the elections, the observation mission presents its first results at a press conference.
Results
Polling stations are open from 8:00 to 17:00 local time. The first results are expected in the next few hours.
Hagia Sophia mosque
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan presented himself at the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul on the eve of the elections. He led the prayers in the famous mosque, a ritual that even the Ottoman sultans performed before an important battle.
The Hagia Sophia is a symbolic place where Erdogan prays at the end of his campaign. Built as a Byzantine cathedral, the Ottomans decided to transform the shrine into a mosque. A hundred years ago, Kemal Atatürk transformed it into a museum, where one can admire the special convergence of religious influences.
In 2020, Erdogan made the decision to turn it back into a mosque, to the delight of his religious supporters. But others in Türkiye and beyond were less happy with the decision. “The whole West got angry, but I did it anyway,” Erdogan boasted.
Critics have seen it as one of many examples of the Islamization Erdogan and his party want to bring to Turkish society. Also in the current electoral campaign he uses the Islamic, nationalist and conservative character of his party to counter the opposition. It would be ‘pro-LGBTI’, for example, while Erdogan cherishes traditional family values.
Source: BNR
Sharon Rock is an author and journalist who writes for 24 News Globe. She has a passion for learning about different cultures and understanding the complexities of the world. With a talent for explaining complex global issues in an accessible and engaging way, Sharon has become a respected voice in the field of world news journalism.
