{"id":7353,"date":"2023-05-28T18:25:01","date_gmt":"2023-05-28T17:25:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=7353"},"modified":"2023-05-28T18:42:34","modified_gmt":"2023-05-28T17:42:34","slug":"unofficial-results-of-turkish-presidential-elections-creates-split-amid-counting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/politics\/unofficial-results-of-turkish-presidential-elections-creates-split-amid-counting\/2023\/05\/28\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Unofficial results of Turkish presidential elections creates split amid counting"},"content":{"rendered":"

ANKARA,<\/span> Turkey<\/span> (AP)<\/span> –<\/span> Turkish<\/span> state-run<\/span> Anadolu<\/span> news<\/span> agency<\/span> provisional<\/span> unofficial<\/span> results<\/span> show<\/span> incumbent<\/span> President<\/span> Recep<\/span> Tayyip<\/span> Erdogan<\/span> leads<\/span> with<\/span> 76%<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> votes<\/span> counted,<\/span> while<\/span> rival<\/span> news<\/span> outlets<\/span> are<\/span> the<\/span> opposition<\/span> candidates<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> presidential<\/span> runoff.<\/span> indicated<\/span> that<\/span> it<\/span> gave<\/span> a<\/span> slight<\/span> advantage.<\/span> It<\/span> is<\/span> an<\/span> election<\/span> that<\/span> will<\/span> determine<\/span> whether<\/span> the<\/span> country’s<\/span> longtime<\/span> leader<\/span> will<\/span> extend<\/span> his<\/span> increasingly<\/span> authoritarian<\/span> rule<\/span> for<\/span> 30<\/span> years.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Anadolu<\/span> gave<\/span> Erdogan<\/span> 54%<\/span> and<\/span> challenger<\/span> Kemal<\/span> Kirikdaroglu<\/span> 46%.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> pro-opposition<\/span> news<\/span> agency<\/span> ANKA,<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> other<\/span> hand,<\/span> said<\/span> 75%<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> ballot<\/span> boxes<\/span> were<\/span> counted,<\/span> with<\/span> 51%<\/span> for<\/span> Kirikdaroglu<\/span> and<\/span> 49%<\/span> for<\/span> Erdogan.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> results<\/span> could<\/span> have<\/span> implications<\/span> far<\/span> beyond<\/span> Ankara.<\/span> Turkey<\/span> sits<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> crossroads<\/span> of<\/span> Europe<\/span> and<\/span> Asia<\/span> and<\/span> plays<\/span> an<\/span> important<\/span> role<\/span> in<\/span> NATO.<\/span> Erdogan’s<\/span> government<\/span> has<\/span> vetoed<\/span> Sweden’s<\/span> NATO<\/span> membership<\/span> and<\/span> purchased<\/span> Russian<\/span> missile<\/span> defense<\/span> systems,<\/span> prompting<\/span> the<\/span> US<\/span> to<\/span> exclude<\/span> Turkey<\/span> from<\/span> US-led<\/span> fighter<\/span> jet<\/span> projects.<\/span> But<\/span> it<\/span> also<\/span> helped<\/span> broker<\/span> important<\/span> deals<\/span> that<\/span> enabled<\/span> Ukrainian<\/span> grain<\/span> shipments<\/span> and<\/span> averted<\/span> a<\/span> global<\/span> food<\/span> crisis.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> May<\/span> 14<\/span> election<\/span> was<\/span> also<\/span> reported<\/span> to<\/span> have<\/span> had<\/span> mixed<\/span> initial<\/span> results.<\/span> Competing<\/span> news<\/span> outlets<\/span> derive<\/span> their<\/span> data<\/span> from<\/span> ballot<\/span> box<\/span> fillings<\/span> collected<\/span> by<\/span> field<\/span> staff,<\/span> showing<\/span> a<\/span> strong<\/span> presence<\/span> in<\/span> different<\/span> regions,<\/span> which<\/span> explains<\/span> some<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> differences<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> preliminary<\/span> data.<\/span> .<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Anadolu’s<\/span> figures<\/span> were<\/span> challenged<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> first<\/span> round<\/span> of<\/span> voting<\/span> on<\/span> May<\/span> 14,<\/span> with<\/span> opposition<\/span> politicians<\/span> claiming<\/span> news<\/span> agencies<\/span> were<\/span> biased<\/span> in<\/span> Erdogan’s<\/span> favor.<\/span> Anadolu<\/span> denied<\/span> the<\/span> accusations<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> final<\/span> results<\/span> showed<\/span> no<\/span> discrepancies.<\/span> Erdo\u011fan<\/span> was<\/span> more<\/span> than<\/span> four<\/span> percent<\/span> ahead<\/span> of<\/span> Kirikdaroglu,<\/span> but<\/span> narrowly<\/span> missed<\/span> out<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> overall<\/span> title<\/span> and<\/span> advanced<\/span> to<\/span> Sunday’s<\/span> second<\/span> round.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Turkey’s<\/span> Electoral<\/span> Commission<\/span> sends<\/span> its<\/span> own<\/span> data<\/span> to<\/span> political<\/span> parties<\/span> throughout<\/span> the<\/span> counting<\/span> period,<\/span> but<\/span> the<\/span> official<\/span> results<\/span> will<\/span> be<\/span> announced<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> few<\/span> days.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Turkey’s<\/span> President<\/span> Recep<\/span> Tayyip<\/span> Erdogan,<\/span> who<\/span> has<\/span> led<\/span> Turkey<\/span> for<\/span> 20<\/span> years,<\/span> has<\/span> been<\/span> nominated<\/span> for<\/span> a<\/span> new<\/span> five-year<\/span> term<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> second<\/span> round<\/span> after<\/span> narrowly<\/span> missing<\/span> out<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> first<\/span> round<\/span> on<\/span> May<\/span> 14.<\/span>\u00a0
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> two<\/span> candidates<\/span> presented<\/span> very<\/span> different<\/span> ideas<\/span> about<\/span> the<\/span> country’s<\/span> future<\/span> and<\/span> recent<\/span> past.<\/span> \u201cThis<\/span> election<\/span> was<\/span> held<\/span> under<\/span> very<\/span> difficult<\/span> circumstances<\/span> and<\/span> there<\/span> was<\/span> all<\/span> sorts<\/span> of<\/span> slander,\u201d<\/span> 74-year-old<\/span> Kirikda<\/span> Rogul<\/span> (pronounced<\/span> Keerich<\/span> Dahar<\/span> Olu)<\/span> told<\/span> reporters<\/span> after<\/span> the<\/span> vote.<\/span> “But<\/span> I<\/span> believe<\/span> in<\/span> common<\/span> sense.<\/span> Democracy<\/span> will<\/span> come,<\/span> freedom<\/span> will<\/span> come,<\/span> people<\/span> will<\/span> be<\/span> able<\/span> to<\/span> walk<\/span> the<\/span> streets<\/span> and<\/span> criticize<\/span> politicians<\/span> freely.”<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Erdogan<\/span> told<\/span> reporters<\/span> after<\/span> the<\/span> vote<\/span> at<\/span> a<\/span> school<\/span> in<\/span> Istanbul<\/span> that<\/span> it<\/span> was<\/span> the<\/span> first<\/span> presidential<\/span> run-off<\/span> in<\/span> Turkey’s<\/span> history.<\/span> He<\/span> also<\/span> praised<\/span> the<\/span> high<\/span> turnout<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> first<\/span> round<\/span> and<\/span> said<\/span> turnout<\/span> would<\/span> be<\/span> high<\/span> again<\/span> on<\/span> Sunday.<\/span> He<\/span> voted<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> same<\/span> time<\/span> as<\/span> Kirikuda<\/span> Rogulu<\/span> when<\/span> local<\/span> television<\/span> aired<\/span> the<\/span> rival<\/span> vote<\/span> on<\/span> split<\/span> screen.<\/span> Critics<\/span> have<\/span> accused<\/span> Erdogan’s<\/span> unconventional<\/span> economic<\/span> policies<\/span> of<\/span> spiking<\/span> inflation<\/span> and<\/span> sparking<\/span> a<\/span> cost-of-living<\/span> crisis.<\/span> Many<\/span> also<\/span> demonstrated<\/span> the<\/span> government’s<\/span> slow<\/span> response<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> earthquake<\/span> that<\/span> killed<\/span> more<\/span> than<\/span> 50,000<\/span> people<\/span> in<\/span> Turkey.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Pensioner<\/span> Mustafa<\/span> Yesir,<\/span> 60,<\/span> said<\/span> he<\/span> voted<\/span> for<\/span> “change”<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> predominantly<\/span> Kurdish<\/span> Diyarbakir<\/span> province,<\/span> one<\/span> of<\/span> 11<\/span> areas<\/span> affected<\/span> by<\/span> the<\/span> February<\/span> 6<\/span> earthquake.<\/span>\u00a0
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>President<\/span> Erdogan<\/span> has<\/span> won<\/span> support<\/span> from<\/span> conservative<\/span> voters<\/span> by<\/span> raising<\/span> the<\/span> profile<\/span> of<\/span> Islam<\/span> in<\/span> Turkey,<\/span> a<\/span> nation<\/span> founded<\/span> on<\/span> secular<\/span> principles,<\/span> and<\/span> increasing<\/span> the<\/span> country’s<\/span> influence<\/span> in<\/span> world<\/span> politics,<\/span> which<\/span> continues<\/span> to<\/span> undermine<\/span> Erdogan.<\/span><\/p>\n

If<\/span> he<\/span> wins,<\/span> Erdogan,<\/span> 69,<\/span> could<\/span> stay<\/span> in<\/span> power<\/span> until<\/span> 2028.<\/span> A<\/span> devout<\/span> Muslim,<\/span> he<\/span> heads<\/span> the<\/span> conservative<\/span> and<\/span> religious<\/span> Justice<\/span> and<\/span> Development<\/span> Party<\/span> (AKP).<\/span> Erdogan<\/span> narrowly<\/span> won<\/span> the<\/span> 2017<\/span> referendum<\/span> to<\/span> abolish<\/span> Turkey’s<\/span> parliamentary<\/span> system<\/span> of<\/span> government,<\/span> transforming<\/span> the<\/span> presidency<\/span> from<\/span> a<\/span> ceremonial<\/span> one<\/span> to<\/span> a<\/span> powerful<\/span> one.<\/span> He<\/span> became<\/span> the<\/span> first<\/span> directly<\/span> elected<\/span> president<\/span> in<\/span> 2014<\/span> and<\/span> won<\/span> the<\/span> 2018<\/span> election,<\/span> which<\/span> marked<\/span> the<\/span> inauguration<\/span> of<\/span> executive<\/span> president.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> first<\/span> half<\/span> of<\/span> Erdogan’s<\/span> presidency<\/span> included<\/span> reforms<\/span> that<\/span> would<\/span> allow<\/span> negotiations<\/span> to<\/span> start<\/span> joining<\/span> the<\/span> European<\/span> Union<\/span> and<\/span> economic<\/span> growth<\/span> that<\/span> would<\/span> lift<\/span> many<\/span> people<\/span> out<\/span> of<\/span> poverty.<\/span> But<\/span> then,<\/span> especially<\/span> after<\/span> the<\/span> failed<\/span> coup<\/span> that<\/span> Turkey<\/span> claims<\/span> was<\/span> orchestrated<\/span> by<\/span> the<\/span> US-based<\/span> Muslim<\/span> cleric<\/span> Fethullah<\/span> Gulen,<\/span> he<\/span> repressed<\/span> freedoms<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> media,<\/span> concentrating<\/span> more<\/span> power<\/span> into<\/span> his<\/span> own<\/span> hands.<\/span> let<\/span> me<\/span> The<\/span> priest<\/span> denies<\/span> his<\/span> involvement.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Erdogan’s<\/span> rival<\/span> is<\/span> a<\/span> mild-mannered<\/span> former<\/span> civil<\/span> servant<\/span> who<\/span> has<\/span> been<\/span> leader<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> pro-secular<\/span> Republican<\/span> People’s<\/span> Party<\/span> (CHP)<\/span> since<\/span> 2010.<\/span> Mr.<\/span> Kilicdaroglu<\/span> campaigned<\/span> on<\/span> promises<\/span> to<\/span> reverse<\/span> President<\/span> Erdogan’s<\/span> democratic<\/span> setbacks,<\/span> return<\/span> to<\/span> more<\/span> traditional<\/span> politics,<\/span> revive<\/span> the<\/span> economy<\/span> and<\/span> improve<\/span> relations<\/span> with<\/span> the<\/span> West.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>In<\/span> a<\/span> desperate<\/span> effort<\/span> to<\/span> appeal<\/span> to<\/span> nationalist<\/span> voters<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> runoff,<\/span> Mr.<\/span> Kilicdaroglu<\/span> vowed<\/span> to<\/span> repatriate<\/span> the<\/span> refugees<\/span> if<\/span> elected,<\/span> ruling<\/span> out<\/span> the<\/span> possibility<\/span> of<\/span> peace<\/span> talks<\/span> with<\/span> Kurdish<\/span> militants.<\/span> Kirikdaroglu’s<\/span> defeat<\/span> would<\/span> add<\/span> to<\/span> Erdogan’s<\/span> long<\/span> list<\/span> of<\/span> election<\/span> defeats<\/span> and<\/span> pressure<\/span> him<\/span> to<\/span> step<\/span> down<\/span> as<\/span> party<\/span> leader.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Erdogan’s<\/span> AKP<\/span> party<\/span> and<\/span> its<\/span> allies<\/span> maintained<\/span> a<\/span> parliamentary<\/span> majority<\/span> after<\/span> the<\/span> general<\/span> elections,<\/span> also<\/span> held<\/span> on<\/span> May<\/span> 14.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Erdogan’s<\/span> party<\/span> dominated<\/span> the<\/span> earthquake<\/span> region,<\/span> winning<\/span> 10<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> 11<\/span> states<\/span> that<\/span> traditionally<\/span> supported<\/span> the<\/span> president.<\/span> In<\/span> eight<\/span> of<\/span> those<\/span> states,<\/span> Erdogan<\/span> won<\/span> the<\/span> first<\/span> round<\/span> of<\/span> presidential<\/span> elections.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Sunday<\/span> also<\/span> marks<\/span> the<\/span> 10th<\/span> anniversary<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> start<\/span> of<\/span> large-scale<\/span> anti-government<\/span> protests<\/span> over<\/span> plans<\/span> to<\/span> uproot<\/span> trees<\/span> in<\/span> Istanbul’s<\/span> Gezi<\/span> Park,<\/span> one<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> biggest<\/span> challenges<\/span> facing<\/span> the<\/span> Erdogan<\/span> government.<\/span> Erdo\u011fan’s<\/span> response<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> protests,<\/span> in<\/span> which<\/span> eight<\/span> people<\/span> were<\/span> convicted<\/span> of<\/span> their<\/span> alleged<\/span> involvement,<\/span> heralded<\/span> a<\/span> crackdown<\/span> on<\/span> civil<\/span> society<\/span> and<\/span> freedom<\/span> of<\/span> expression.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>After<\/span> the<\/span> May<\/span> 14<\/span> vote,<\/span> international<\/span> observers<\/span> pointed<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> spread<\/span> of<\/span> false<\/span> information<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> criminalization<\/span> of<\/span> online<\/span> censorship<\/span> as<\/span> evidence<\/span> of<\/span> Erdogan’s<\/span> “unfair<\/span> advantage”.<\/span> He<\/span> also<\/span> said<\/span> the<\/span> high<\/span> voter<\/span> turnout<\/span> showed<\/span> the<\/span> resilience<\/span> of<\/span> Turkey’s<\/span> democracy.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Erdogan<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> pro-government<\/span> media<\/span> have<\/span> portrayed<\/span> Mr.<\/span> Kilicdaroglu,<\/span> who<\/span> has<\/span> drawn<\/span> support<\/span> from<\/span> the<\/span> country’s<\/span> pro-Kurdish<\/span> political<\/span> parties,<\/span> as<\/span> working<\/span> with<\/span> “terrorists”<\/span> who<\/span> support<\/span> “deviant”<\/span> LGBTQ<\/span> rights.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>At<\/span> his<\/span> recent<\/span> election<\/span> rally,<\/span> Erdogan<\/span> referred<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> Iraqi<\/span> mountains,<\/span> where<\/span> the<\/span> banned<\/span> Kurdistan<\/span> Workers<\/span> Party<\/span> (PKK)<\/span> leadership<\/span> is<\/span> based,<\/span> and<\/span> repeated<\/span> that<\/span> Kirikda<\/span> Rogul<\/span> “has<\/span> been<\/span> ordered<\/span> by<\/span> Qandil.”<\/span>\u00a0
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> elections<\/span> were<\/span> held<\/span> during<\/span> the<\/span> celebration<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> 100th<\/span> anniversary<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> founding<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> republic<\/span> after<\/span> the<\/span> fall<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> Ottoman<\/span> Empire.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) – Turkish state-run Anadolu news agency provisional unofficial results show incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan leads with 76% of the votes counted, while rival news outlets are the opposition candidates in the presidential runoff. indicated that it gave a slight advantage. It is an election that will determine whether the country’s longtime […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7354,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[280],"tags":[5537,5538,5539,5540,4414,5535,5536],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/download-9-1.jpg","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7353"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7353"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7353\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7355,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7353\/revisions\/7355"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7354"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7353"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7353"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7353"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}