Polling stations in Turkey closed their doors on Sunday after the second round of presidential elections in which incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan left the preferred candidate after two decades in power, in the face of his Social Democratic rival Kemal Kilicdaroglu.
Turkey’s presidential election: 10 things to know about Kemal Kilicdaroglu, Erdogan’s main opponent
Despite the intense desire for change on the part of a part of the electorate, tired of the economic crisis, the restrictions imposed on freedoms, and the excessive presidency of power that has put tens of thousands of dissidents behind bars or in exile, the head of state, 69, with a five-point lead in the first round on May 14, with 49.5% of the vote.
sequel after announcement
Erdogan or Kilicdaroglu? A bitter end to the campaign ahead of the second round of the presidential elections in Türkiye
A weary, slow-moving Recep Tayyip Erdogan voted midday in the Uskudar district on Istanbul’s Asian side: A jubilant crowd awaited him, his bodyguards handing out toys while the president handed out some banknotes to children.
“No country in the world has a turnout rate of 90%, and Turkey has almost reached that percentage. I ask my fellow citizens to come and vote without weakening.he argued.
The turnout for the first round was 87%. Almost simultaneously, everyone smiling despite unfavorable expectations, Kemal Kilicdaroglu cast his ballot in Ankara, encouraging his countrymen to vote. “Until true democracy and freedom come to this country, to get rid of the tyrannical government”.
“difficult” campaign
The two candidates called on their supporters to monitor the polls until the final results. “Now is the time to protect our nation’s will over our heads until the very last moment!” »Erdogan tweeted immediately after the polls closed at 5:00 pm local time (2:00 pm GMT).
Erdogan or Kilicdaroglu? A bitter end to the campaign ahead of the second round of the presidential elections in Türkiye
Erdogan’s camp has long described the opposition led by Kılıçdaroğlu as “terrorist” Because of the support given to him by the leaders of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party.
sequel after announcement
Everyone calm down before the countdown.Halis Ferit, 56, an observer for Kilicdaroglu’s Republican People’s Party, fired at a polling station in Istanbul.
The first results are expected in the early evening, officials in the ruling party, Erdogan’s Islamist-conservative Justice and Development Party (AKP), have suggested. On the evening of the first round, they were subjected to several verbal challenges by the opposition, who this time decided to put five auditors in front of each ballot box – a million observers across the country.
People interviewed in the polling station lines attested to the polarization of the country after these weeks of campaigning. In Ankara, Mehmet Emin Ayaz, a 64-year-old businessman, believes “Important to preserve what was acquired over the past 20 years in Turkey” In the era of Erdogan. In contrast, Aisen Gundai, a 61-year-old retiree, wanted this election to take place ” Referendum “ Against the president and chose Kemal Kilicdaroglu.
Two visions of the homeland
Two visions of country, society, and governance were offered to Turkey’s 60 million voters (already a diaspora vote) who were invited to the polls: stability in the peril of authoritarianism with Recep Tayyip Erdogan, or a promised return to power. Law and justice, he said, is with his opponent, a 74-year-old former senior official.
sequel after announcement
Presidential Elections in Türkiye: Erdogan’s Narrow Road
Not more than the first round of the campaign, the economy did not impose itself in the national debate despite the inflation, which reached about 40% and the sharp decline in the national currency, which severely affected the purchasing power of the population.
Even the areas devastated by the February 6 earthquake, which left at least 50,000 dead and three million displaced, put their trust greatly in the head of state, who doubled his generosity and promises of reconstruction.
Türkiye: “The economic and social picture on the eve of the elections is very dark”
Confronting him, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, Didi Democracy “Democratic Grandpa,” as this white-haired, thin-bespectacled, trained economist introduces himself, he seemed frustrated by being late in the first round.
‘We’re less excited’ Only in the first round was one of his supporters identified, Bayram Ali Yosh, a 45-year-old welder.
sequel after announcement
Access to official TV
Lacking access to mainstream media and especially state TV channels, Kemal Kilicdaroglu fought back on Twitter when his supporters tried to remobilize voters by going door-to-door in major cities.
Elections in Türkiye: Erdogan’s model is breathtaking
In the face of this hidden man of Alevi obedience, a branch of Islam that hard-line Sunnis consider heretical, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has multiplied the meetings, counting on the transformations he has been able to achieve in the country since he came to power. in 2003, then as president since 2014.
The date for this second round comes ten years to the day following the start of the major demonstrations “jeezy” which spread throughout the country and was severely suppressed.
However, Erdogan’s camp expressed, on Sunday, its confidence in preparing for the outgoing president’s speech, on Sunday evening, from the presidential palace in Ankara.
