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| Turkey referendum: Historic vote on presidential powers under way | Turkey referendum: Historic vote on presidential powers under way |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Voting is under way in Turkey in a landmark referendum that will determine whether President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will be granted sweeping new powers. | Voting is under way in Turkey in a landmark referendum that will determine whether President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will be granted sweeping new powers. |
| Mr Erdogan is seeking to replace Turkey's parliamentary system with an executive presidency. | Mr Erdogan is seeking to replace Turkey's parliamentary system with an executive presidency. |
| Supporters say the move would streamline and modernise the country, but opponents fear it could lead to greater authoritarianism. | Supporters say the move would streamline and modernise the country, but opponents fear it could lead to greater authoritarianism. |
| A "Yes" vote could also see Mr Erdogan remain in office until 2029. | A "Yes" vote could also see Mr Erdogan remain in office until 2029. |
| About 55 million people are eligible to vote across 167,000 polling stations, with the results expected to be announced late on Sunday evening. | About 55 million people are eligible to vote across 167,000 polling stations, with the results expected to be announced late on Sunday evening. |
| Polls suggest a narrow lead for "Yes". | Polls suggest a narrow lead for "Yes". |
| How significant are the changes? | How significant are the changes? |
| They would represent the most sweeping programme of constitutional changes since Turkey became a republic almost a century ago. | They would represent the most sweeping programme of constitutional changes since Turkey became a republic almost a century ago. |
| Mr Erdogan would be given vastly enhanced powers to appoint cabinet ministers, issue decrees, choose senior judges and dissolve parliament. | Mr Erdogan would be given vastly enhanced powers to appoint cabinet ministers, issue decrees, choose senior judges and dissolve parliament. |
| The new system would scrap the role of prime minister and concentrate power in the hands of the president, placing all state bureaucracy under his control. | The new system would scrap the role of prime minister and concentrate power in the hands of the president, placing all state bureaucracy under his control. |
| Erdogan's Turkey: The full story | Erdogan's Turkey: The full story |
| What is the case for "Yes"? | What is the case for "Yes"? |
| Mr Erdogan says the changes are needed to address the security challenges faced by Turkey nine months after an attempted coup, and to avoid the fragile coalition governments of the past. | Mr Erdogan says the changes are needed to address the security challenges faced by Turkey nine months after an attempted coup, and to avoid the fragile coalition governments of the past. |
| He says the new system will resemble those in France and the US and will bring calm in a time of turmoil marked by a Kurdish insurgency, Islamist militancy and conflict in neighbouring Syria that has led to a huge refugee influx. | He says the new system will resemble those in France and the US and will bring calm in a time of turmoil marked by a Kurdish insurgency, Islamist militancy and conflict in neighbouring Syria that has led to a huge refugee influx. |
| Speaking at one of his final rallies in Istanbul's Tuzla district, Mr Erdogan told supporters that the new constitution would "bring stability and trust that is needed for our country to develop and grow". | Speaking at one of his final rallies in Istanbul's Tuzla district, Mr Erdogan told supporters that the new constitution would "bring stability and trust that is needed for our country to develop and grow". |
| "Turkey can leap into the future," he said. | "Turkey can leap into the future," he said. |
| The BBC's Mark Lowen says the referendum is effectively one on Mr Erdogan and the Turkey he has moulded in his image: fiercely nationalist and conservative. | The BBC's Mark Lowen says the referendum is effectively one on Mr Erdogan and the Turkey he has moulded in his image: fiercely nationalist and conservative. |
| Why is Turkey holding a referendum? | Why is Turkey holding a referendum? |
| And what about for "No"? | And what about for "No"? |
| Opponents and critics of the proposed changes fear the move would make the president's position too powerful, arguing that it would amount to one-man rule, without the checks and balances of other presidential systems. | Opponents and critics of the proposed changes fear the move would make the president's position too powerful, arguing that it would amount to one-man rule, without the checks and balances of other presidential systems. |
| They say his ability to retain ties to a political party - Mr Erdogan could resume leadership of the AK Party (AKP) he co-founded - would end any chance of impartiality. | They say his ability to retain ties to a political party - Mr Erdogan could resume leadership of the AK Party (AKP) he co-founded - would end any chance of impartiality. |
| Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), told a rally in Ankara that a "Yes" vote would endanger the country. | Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), told a rally in Ankara that a "Yes" vote would endanger the country. |
| "We will put 80 million people on to a bus... we don't know where it is headed. We are putting 80 million on a bus with no brakes," he said. | "We will put 80 million people on to a bus... we don't know where it is headed. We are putting 80 million on a bus with no brakes," he said. |
| "No" supporters have complained of intimidation during the divisive referendum campaign, and Turkey's highly regulated media has given them little coverage. | "No" supporters have complained of intimidation during the divisive referendum campaign, and Turkey's highly regulated media has given them little coverage. |
| Critics abroad fear Erdogan's reach | Critics abroad fear Erdogan's reach |
| The day a Turkish writer's life changed | The day a Turkish writer's life changed |
| What's the wider context here? | What's the wider context here? |
| Many Turks already fear growing authoritarianism in their country, where tens of thousands of people have been arrested, and at least 100,000 sacked or suspended from their jobs since a coup attempt last July. | Many Turks already fear growing authoritarianism in their country, where tens of thousands of people have been arrested, and at least 100,000 sacked or suspended from their jobs since a coup attempt last July. |
| The campaign, which has polarised the country, has taken place under a state of emergency imposed in the wake of the failed putsch. | The campaign, which has polarised the country, has taken place under a state of emergency imposed in the wake of the failed putsch. |
| Mr Erdogan assumed the presidency, meant to be a largely ceremonial position, in 2014 after more than a decade as prime minister. | Mr Erdogan assumed the presidency, meant to be a largely ceremonial position, in 2014 after more than a decade as prime minister. |
| This once stable corner of the region has in recent years been convulsed by terror attacks and millions of refugees, mostly from Syria, have arrived. | This once stable corner of the region has in recent years been convulsed by terror attacks and millions of refugees, mostly from Syria, have arrived. |
| At the same time, the middle class has ballooned and infrastructure has been modernised. Under Mr Erdogan, religious Turks have been empowered. | At the same time, the middle class has ballooned and infrastructure has been modernised. Under Mr Erdogan, religious Turks have been empowered. |
| Relations with the EU, meanwhile, have deteriorated. Mr Erdogan sparred bitterly with European governments who planned rallies by his ministers in their countries during the referendum campaign, calling the decisions "Nazi acts". | Relations with the EU, meanwhile, have deteriorated. Mr Erdogan sparred bitterly with European governments who planned rallies by his ministers in their countries during the referendum campaign, calling the decisions "Nazi acts". |
| In one of his final rallies in Istanbul, he said a strong "Yes" vote would "be a lesson to the West". | |
| Turkey's dominant president | Turkey's dominant president |
| The ultranationalists who could sway Erdogan | The ultranationalists who could sway Erdogan |
| What's in the new constitution? | What's in the new constitution? |
| The draft states that the next presidential and parliamentary elections will be held on 3 November 2019. | The draft states that the next presidential and parliamentary elections will be held on 3 November 2019. |
| The president would have a five-year tenure, for a maximum of two terms. | The president would have a five-year tenure, for a maximum of two terms. |