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Erdoğan faces scrutiny once more as Istanbul goes back to the polls Erdoğan's party defeated in Istanbul mayoral election rerun
(about 2 hours later)
Millions of people across Istanbul have returned to the polls for the rerun of a mayoral vote that is likely to have dramatic consequences for the future of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development party (AKP). Turkey’s ruling party in Istanbul’s controversial mayoral election rerun has conceded defeat, handing the nation’s beleaguered opposition a victory that will have dramatic consequences for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s grip on the country.
The Opposition Republican People’s party (CHP) candidate, Ekrem İmamoğlu, stunned the country after his narrow win in local elections on 31 March, a rare defeat and personal blow to Erdoğan in his hometown. The ruling Justice and Development party (AKP) candidate and former prime minister Binali Yıldırım admitted he had lost to the opposition Republican People’s party (CHP) candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu in televised remarks just two-and-a-half hours after polls closed on Sunday evening, congratulating his rival and imploring him to serve Istanbul well.
However, after weeks of appeals by the AKP, Turkey’s electoral board upheld one of the ruling party’s complaints regarding ballot counting and annulled İmamoğlu’s victory – a decision that sparked international outrage. Sunday’s rerun, in which at least 10 million people were eligible to vote, was seen as a test for Turkey’s fragile democratic standards and Erdoğan’s political future.
On Sunday, at least 10 million people were eligible to vote in the rerun, which has come to be seen as both a test for Turkey’s fragile democratic standards and Erdoĝan’s political future. The swift concession by Yıldırım, an Erdoğan ally, spared the AKP the embarrassment of watching live results trickle in on Sunday night. However, it will now lead to intensified power struggles between factions inside the ruling coalition.
“I’m not happy I’ve had to come vote again,” said Aysun Coç, 53. “İmamoğlu will win again with an even bigger margin this time. So what – they will make us do another vote next month? The government will have to accept the result this time. If they don’t, we are ready to protest in a big way.” Turkey’s opposition, meanwhile, was jubilant at the initial results. Cars honked incessantly in liberal neighbourhoods and strangers shook hands and congratulated each other on the win. İmamoğlu’s voice echoed from public television screens and from inside cafes.
AKP’s candidate for mayor, the former prime minister Binali Yıldırım, has worked hard to close the gap of 13,000 votes, reach out to the party’s base in working-class and conservative neighbourhoods who punished the government for Turkey’s economic crisis by staying away from the voting booth in March. İmamoğlu first stunned the country after a narrow win in local elections held on 31 March, a rare defeat and personal blow to Erdoğan in his beloved hometown.
However, two days before the vote, most reliable polls showed that İmamoğlu’s lead over his rival had widened to 8-9%. However, after weeks of AKP appeals, Turkey’s electoral board upheld one of the ruling party’s complaints regarding ballot counting and annulled İmamoğlu’s victory – a decision that sparked international outrage.
The previously anonymous local administrator was welcomed by voters across the city in March for a platform that focused on bringing people together across the city’s highly polarised religious, class and ethnic divides. “I’m not happy I’ve had to come vote again,” Aysun Coç, 53, said after casting her vote on Sunday morning. “İmamoğlu will win again with an even bigger margin this time. So what, they will make us do another vote next month?
He has painted his new campaign as a battle for the future of Turkish democracy itself. “Today our people will make the best decision … for the sake of our democracy, for Istanbul and also for the legitimacy of all future elections,” he told reporters after voting on Sunday morning. “The government will have to accept the result this time. If they don’t, we are ready to protest in a big way.”
Erdoğan also returned to his hometown from the capital, Ankara, to cast his vote. “I believe the thinking voter will make the best decision for Istanbul,” he told hundreds of supporters who greeted him near his residence in Üsküdar, on the Asian side of the Bosphorus. Yıldırım, worked hard to close the gap of 13,000 votes, reaching out to the party’s base in working class and conservative neighbourhoods who punished the government for Turkey’s economic crisis by staying away from the voting booth in March.
Losing Istanbul for a second time would be an embarrassing and unacceptable outcome for the AKP. As Turkey’s biggest city and economic hub, Istanbul accounted for 31% of Turkey’s GDP in 2017, and the city is an important driver of the government’s unofficial patronage networks. However, in a televised debate with İmamoğlu and in conversations with voters Yıldırım struggled to explain why a repeat election is necessary. Two days before the vote, most reliable polls showed that İmamoğlu’s lead over his rival had widened to as much as 9%. Unofficial counts showed that with nearly all ballot boxes counted, İmamoğlu had a lead of more than 715,000 votes. Yıldırım made his concession speech minutes later.
“If İmamoğlu wins again, there’s going to be a chain of serious changes in Turkish politics,” the journalist and writer Murat Yetkin told Reuters. “It will be interpreted as the beginning of a decline for AKP and for Erdoğan as well,” he added, noting that the president himself had called the local elections “a matter of survival”. İmamoğlu, a previously anonymous local administrator was embraced by voters across the city in March for a platform that focused on bringing people together across the city’s highly polarised religious, class and ethnic divides.
Rumours are already circulating in political circles that a second defeat could trigger a snap national election as Erdoğan seeks to oust increasingly fractious elements in his government coalition. He painted his new campaign as a battle for the future of Turkish democracy itself.
In Istanbul on Sunday, both AKP and CHP voters said they did not relish the prospect of further turmoil after polls closed at 5pm. “Clearly there is some funny business going on here but I don’t know what,” said 65-year-old AKP voter Cihat Içyumaz. “Today our people will make the best decision … for the sake of our democracy, for Istanbul and also for the legitimacy of all future elections,” he told reporters after voting on Sunday morning.
Erdoğan returned to his hometown from capital Ankara to cast his vote. “I believe the thinking voter will make the best decision for Istanbul,” he told hundreds of supporters who greeted him near his residence in Üsküdar, on the Asian side of the Bosphorus.
Losing Istanbul for a second time had been an unthinkable outcome for the AKP. As Turkey’s biggest city and economic hub, Istanbul accounted for 31% of Turkey’s GDP in 2017, and the city is an important driver of the government’s unofficial patronage networks. It has been controlled by the ruling party and its Islamist predecessors for the last quarter of a century.
“If İmamoğlu wins again, there’s going to be a chain of serious changes in Turkish politics,” journalist and writer Murat Yetkin told Reuters earlier on Sunday.
“It will be interpreted as the beginning of a decline for AKP and for Erdoğan as well,” he added, noting that the president himself had called the local elections “a matter of survival”.
Rumours are already circulating in political circles that the second defeat could trigger a snap national election as Erdoğan seeks to oust increasingly fractious elements in his current government coalition.
Former president Abdullah Gül, who has been openly critical of the decision to rerun Istanbul’s mayoral election, caused a stir on Sunday by telling reporters “God willing everything will be fine”. The phrase’s similarity to İmamoğlu’s slogan – “Everything will be fine” – led to speculation the former Erdogan ally had cast his ballot for İmamoğlu.
Across the city on Sunday, both AKP and CHP voters were united in their desire to avoid further political turmoil after polls closed at 5pm.
“Clearly there is some funny business going on here but I don’t know what,” aid 65-year-old AKP voter Cihat Içyumaz, who, like many Istanbullus, cut short his summer holiday to come home and vote.
“For me, chaos after this round of elections is the scariest outcome. I just want the candidate who is best for Istanbul to win.”“For me, chaos after this round of elections is the scariest outcome. I just want the candidate who is best for Istanbul to win.”
Preliminary results were expected late on Sunday evening, but official results may be delayed several days as cross-party officials painstakingly watch the counting of votes for signs of electoral tampering. Istanbul set for mayor vote re-run that could cement blow to Erdoğan
Preliminary results are expected late on Sunday evening, but official results could still be delayed several days as cross-party officials painstakingly monitor the vote counting process.
After heavy criticism of official news agency Anadolu’s handling of the 31 March election results – during which the live TV feed stopped several times as the opposition began to make gains – private ANKA news agency and Fox TV in Turkey announced they will also broadcast the live vote count.
The Council of Europe, a France-based human rights organisation, deployed a team of monitors across Istanbul to observe Sunday’s election.
Additional reporting by Gökçe Saraçoğlu
TurkeyTurkey
Recep Tayyip ErdoğanRecep Tayyip Erdoğan
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