The president of Turkey has declared that the country’s next legislative and presidential elections would be held on May 14. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made the statement on Saturday addressing a youth summit in the province of Bursa in the country’s northern region. On Sunday, a video of the occurrence was published. Erdogan, who had hinted at the date last week, stated, “I thank God that we are destined to share our road with you, our beloved young, who will vote for the first time in elections on May 14.”
In Bursa, he stated that the formal announcement will be made on March 10, following which the Supreme Election Council of Turkey would prepare for the elections. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote, there will be a second round of voting on May 28. The opposition has not yet nominated a candidate. Erdogan, who has been in government since 2003 – first as prime minister, then since 2014 as president – faces his greatest challenge in his two decades at the helm of the regional military force, NATO member, and significant emerging market economy. A six-party opposition alliance has not yet nominated a candidate for president. The third-largest pro-Kurdish party in parliament has been ejected from the coalition and has stated that it may run its own candidate. The opposition has accused 68-year-old Erdogan for Turkey’s economic decline and the degradation of civil rights and freedoms, claiming that the revamped government structure equates to “one-man tyranny.”
In 2018, Erdogan instituted a form of government that eliminated the position of prime minister and vested the majority of authority in the presidency. Prior to that time, the presidency was mostly a ceremonial position. Under the new system, presidential and legislative elections are held simultaneously. The presidential and legislative elections were planned to take place on June 18, although Erdogan has already indicated that they may be moved early. An official of his AK Party earlier stated that a June election would coincide with the travel-heavy summer holiday season.
