Turkey will have, for the first time in history, a second round of presidential elections. But what at the outset might seem like a setback for the current head of state, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has been in power for 20 years and is looking for a third consecutive term, seen in detail ends up showing that he is not as outdated as expected. And that the opposition, even united around Kemal Kilicdaroglu’s candidacy, still seems to be far from being able to beat the country’s strong man
.The pre-election polls gave victory to Kilicdaroglu, in some cases until the first round, but at the polls the approximately 64 million Turkish voters once again demonstrated their support for Erdogan. According to preliminary results, and with a record participation of 88.8%, the 69-year-old president had 49.5% of the votes and was on the verge of having the party now, compared to Kilicdaroglu’s 44.9%, five years more old. In the two previous presidential elections by universal suffrage, in 2015 and 2018 (before the head of state was elected by parliament), Erdogan had won in the first round.
The president was unable to repeat the feat, but starts as a favorite for the second round. Not only because he was on the verge of victory this Sunday, but because his Justice and Development Party (AKP) was the most voted for the Grand National Assembly. He elected 267 of the 600 deputies and the Popular Alliance, of which he is a member, achieved a majority (322 representatives). The Nation’s Alliance only won 213 deputies, of which 169 were from Kilicdaroglu’s Republican People’s Party (CHP).
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