Turkey’s current president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, declared victory in his country’s second round of elections on Sunday, extending his increasingly authoritarian rule right into a third decade.
With almost 99% of the ballot boxes open, unofficial results from rival news agencies showed Erdogan winning 52% of the vote, in comparison with 48% for his challenger, Kemal Kilicdaroglu.
In his first comment for the reason that polls closed, Erdogan spoke to supporters on a polling bus outside his home in Istanbul.
“I thank every member of our nation for entrusting me with the responsibility of running this country again for the subsequent five years,” he said.
He taunted his rival for his loss, saying “bye bye, Kemal” because the fans booed.
“The one winner today is Türkiye,” Erdogan said.
In Istanbul, Erdogan’s supporters began celebrating even before the ultimate results were announced, waving Turkish or ruling party flags and honking horns.
The final result could have ramifications far beyond Ankara. Turkey lies on the crossroads of Europe and Asia and plays a key role in NATO.
The Erdogan government has vetoed Sweden’s bid to hitch NATO and has purchased Russian missile defense systems, prompting the US to force Turkey out of the US-led fighter project. Nevertheless, he also helped negotiate a key deal that enabled Ukrainian grain shipments and averted a world food crisis.
Competing news agencies obtain ballot box count data that’s collected by field personnel and is powerful across regions, explaining among the variation in initial data. The Turkish Electoral Commission sends its own data to political parties when counting votes, but doesn’t announce the official results until several days later.
Erdogan, who has been on the helm of Turkey for 20 years, was favored to win a recent five-year term in the second round of the second round, after coming near a direct victory in the primary round on May 14.
A brave populist finished 4 percentage points against Kilicdaroglu (pronounced KEH-lich-DAHR-OH-loo), a six-party alliance candidate. Erdogan’s performance got here despite crippling inflation and the consequences of a devastating earthquake three months ago. For the primary time, he didn’t win the elections in which he ran.
The 2 candidates presented sharply different visions the long run of the countryand his recent past.
“This election was held in very difficult circumstances, there have been every kind of slander and defamation,” Kilicdaroglu, 74, told reporters after casting his vote. “But I think in people’s common sense. Democracy will come, freedom will come, people will have the option to walk the streets and freely criticize politicians.
Talking to reporters after voting at a college in Istanbul, Erdogan noted that that is the primary presidential election in Turkey’s history. He also praised the high voter turnout in the primary round and said he expected turnout to be high again on Sunday. He voted concurrently Kilicdaroglu, as local television showed rivals casting their votes on split screens.
“I pray to God that this (election) will likely be helpful for our country and nation,” he said.
Critics blame Erdogan’s unorthodox economic policies for soaring inflation, which has fueled the fee of living crisis. Many also blamed his government for the slow response to the earthquake that killed greater than 50,000 people in Turkey.
Within the predominantly Kurdish province of Diyarbakir – one in every of the 11 regions affected by the February 6 earthquake – Mustafa Yesil, a 60-year-old pensioner, said he had voted for “change”.
“I’m in no way glad with the direction this country goes. Let me be clear, if the present administration continues, I do not see good prospects for the long run,” he said. “I can see this going to finish badly – this administration needs to vary.”
Mehmet Yurttas, a supporter of Erdogan, disagreed.
“I believe our homeland is at the highest, in very fine condition,” said the 57-year-old store owner. “The trajectory of our country is superb and can proceed to be good.”
Erdogan retained the support of devoted conservative voters for elevating Islam in Turkey, which was based on secular principles, and for increasing the country’s influence in world politics.
Erdogan, 69, could remain in power until 2028. A devout Muslim, he heads the conservative and non secular Justice and Development Party (AKP). Erdogan transformed the presidency from a largely ceremonial role into a robust office through a narrowly won referendum in 2017 that dismantled Turkey’s parliamentary system of presidency. He was the primary directly elected president in 2014 and won the 2018 election, which marked the start of the chief presidency.
The primary half of Erdogan’s term saw reforms that allowed the country to enter into talks to hitch the European Union, and economic growth that lifted many out of poverty. But later he began to suppress freedoms and the media and concentrated more power in his hands, especially after a failed coup attempt that Turkey said was orchestrated by US-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen. The priest denies involvement.
Erdogan’s rival is a mild-mannered former civil servant who has led the pro-secular Republican People’s Party (CHP) since 2010. Kilicdaroglu campaigned on guarantees to reverse Erdogan’s democratic decline, restore the economy by returning to more conventional politics, and improve relations with the West.
In a frantic effort reach nationalist voters in the second round, Kilicdaroglu promised to send the refugees back and ruled out peace negotiations with Kurdish fighters if elected.
A defeat for Kilicdaroglu would add to Erdogan’s long list of electoral failures and put pressure on him to step down as party chairman.
Erdogan’s AKP party and its allies retained a majority of seats in parliament after the parliamentary elections also held on May 14.
Sunday also marked the tenth anniversary of the beginning of the mass anti-government protests that erupted over plans to uproot trees in Istanbul’s Gezi Park and have develop into probably the most serious challenges facing Erdogan’s government.
Erdogan’s response to the protests where eight people were convicted for alleged involvement, heralded a crackdown on civil society and free speech.
After the May 14 vote, international observers pointed to the criminalization of dissemination of faux news and online censorship as evidence that Erdogan had an “unjustified advantage”. Additionally they said that the high turnout showed the resilience of Turkish democracy.
Erdogan and pro-government media portrayed Kilicdaroglu, who received the support of the country’s pro-Kurdish party, as colluding with “terrorists” and supporting what they described as “deviant” LGBTQ rights.
Kilicdaroglu “takes orders from Qandil,” Erdogan repeatedly said at recent election rallies, referring to the mountains in Iraq where the leadership of the outlawed Kurdistan Staff’ Party (PKK) is predicated.
The elections took place because the country celebrated its one hundredth anniversary as a republic after the autumn of the Ottoman Empire.