President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) has been defeated in Turkey’s local elections. However, Erdogan, who has been in power for two decades, described the results of Sunday’s (March 31) election as a’momentum’. News AFP.
The Republican People’s Party (CHP) is leading in partial results of the election in this country of eight and a half million people. “Tomorrow is going to be a new spring day for our country,” Istanbul mayor and opposition leader Ekrem Imamoglu told cheering supporters after nearly all the votes were counted.Turkey’s Electoral Commission will announce the final results on Monday.
The 70-year-old Erdoğan deployed an all-out victory in Istanbul. He was once the mayor of Istanbul, which is known as the ‘powerhouse’ of the country’s economy. However, due to excessive inflation and the economic crisis, the confidence of the people in the ruling party has decreased.
Meanwhile, the CHP celebrated the victory of the opposition by flying Turkish flags and lighting torches outside the headquarters of the Republican People’s Party in Istanbul.
With his vote in the election, Imamoglu said “everything will be alright,” which he has been using as his campaign slogan. The 52-year-old is set to emerge as Erdogan’s main challenger in the next presidential election in 2028.
In addition, Mansur Yavas of the Republican People’s Party won as mayor of Ankara. Declaring himself the winner of the election, he said to the crowd, “The election is over, and we will serve Ankara. Mansoor Yavas also said, “Those who were neglected in the governance of the country have given a clear message as to who will truly take over.”
Meanwhile, opposition wins were also reported in Turkey’s third-largest city of Izmir and the southern city of Antalya. In addition, news of the possible defeat of Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party is coming from several other cities known as strongholds of the ruling party.
In this context, CHP chairman Ozgur Özel said, “Voters have decided to change the face of Turkey.” They want to open the doors to a new political environment in the country.
Erdogan’s party suffers a landslide defeat in Turkey’s local elections
