Turkey votes in pivotal elections that could end Erdogan’s 20-year rule

ISTANBUL, May 14 (Reuters) – Turks voted on Sunday in one of the most important elections in Turkey’s modern 100-year history. The election could either dethrone President Tayyip Erdogan and end the course of an increasingly authoritarian regime, or mark Erdogan’s 30th year in office. .

The vote is not just about who will lead Turkey, a NATO member of 85 million people, but also about how Turkey will be governed, where its economy will head amid a severe cost-of-living crisis, and what diplomacy it has taken. It will also determine the form of policy. unpredictable turns.

Opinion polls show Erdogan’s main challenger, Kemal Kirikdaroglu, who heads the six-party opposition coalition, has a slight lead, but if either party fails to win more than 50% of the vote, he could face the challenge in May. A run-off election will be held on the 28th.

Voters will also elect a new parliament, with the People’s Alliance, which includes President Erdogan’s Islamist conservative AK Party (AKP) and the nationalist party MHP, and Kirikdaroglu’s secularist Republican People’s Party. There is a high possibility that it will be a close battle with the National Alliance, which is composed of six opposition parties, including. (CHP) was founded by Turkish founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

Voting opens at 8am (GMT0500) and ends at 5pm (GMT1400). Turkish law prohibits the reporting of results until 9 p.m., which could give a good indication of whether there will be a presidential run-off by late Sunday.

In the predominantly Kurdish southeastern city of Diyarbakir, which was hit by a devastating earthquake in February, some said they voted for the opposition, others for Erdogan.

“This country needs change,” said Nuri Can, 26, who cited Turkey’s economic crisis as a reason for voting for Kirikdaroglu. “There will be another economic crisis after the election, so I demanded change.”

But Hayati Arslan, 51, said he voted for President Erdogan and his AK party.

“Even though the economic situation in the country is not good, I still believe that President Erdogan will solve this situation. I want it to continue,” he said.

About 9,000 police officers were on duty across the state, with lines forming at polling stations throughout the city.

Many of the states affected by the quake, which killed more than 50,000 people, have expressed anger at the government’s slow initial response, but there is little evidence that the issue has changed the way people vote. .

Kurdish voters, who make up 15-20% of the electorate, will play a key role, and the National Alliance is unlikely to win parliamentary majority on its own.

The pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP), which is not part of the main opposition coalition, has been bitterly opposed to Erdogan following the recent crackdown on its members.

The HDP has endorsed Mr. Kirikdaroglu in the presidential election. The party is heading into parliamentary elections with the emblem of the small Green Left Party because of a lawsuit filed by a senior prosecutor seeking to ban the HDP over its ties to Kurdish militants. is denied.

End of an era?

Erdogan, 69, is a powerful orator and campaigning master who has given his all in the campaign to overcome the toughest political tests. He has drawn fierce allegiance from devout Turks who once felt disenfranchised in secular Turkey, and his political career has survived a failed coup in 2016 and numerous corruption scandals. .

But if Turkey ousts Erdogan, it will be largely because inflation, which topped 85% in October 2022, and the collapsing of the lira currency will hinder Turkey’s ability to meet its own prosperity, equality, and basic needs. I think it’s because it looks like it’s gone down.

A 74-year-old former civil servant, Kilicdaroglu, promises a return to orthodox economic policies from President Erdogan’s hardline control if he wins.

Kirikdaroglu also said he would seek to return the country to a parliamentary system of government, following Erdogan’s executive presidential system, which was passed in a 2017 referendum. He also promised to restore judicial independence that critics say Erdogan has used to crack down. be against.

During his time in power, Erdogan has tightly controlled most Turkish institutions, sidelining liberals and critics. Human Rights Watch said in its World Report 2022 that Erdogan’s government set Turkey’s human rights record back decades.

If he wins, Kirikdaroglu will face the challenge of maintaining the unity of the opposition coalition, which includes nationalists, Islamists, secularists and liberals.

The final day of the election campaign was marked by accusations of foreign interference.

Kirikdaroglu said the party had concrete evidence of Russia’s responsibility for publishing “deepfake” online content, which Russia denied. Erdogan has accused the opposition of working with US President Joe Biden to overthrow him. A State Department spokesperson said Washington will not take sides in the election.

Written by Alexandra Hudson Edited by Francis Kelly

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