According to state media, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is just ahead of challenger Kemal Kilicdaroglu in the runoff. So far, 95 percent of the votes have been counted.
According to state media, Turkish head of state Recep Tayyip Erdogan is leading the presidential election in Turkey. The incumbent received 52 percent of the vote in Sunday’s runoff, state media reported after counting 95 percent of the ballots cast. His challenger Kemal Kilicdaroglu comes to 48 percent.
In the first ballot two weeks ago, none of the candidates had received the required absolute majority. Polls before the first round saw the Social Democratic opposition leader ahead. Contrary to what was predicted, however, Erdogan landed almost five percentage points ahead of Kilicdaroglu in the first ballot and only just missed the absolute majority. Erdogan then went into the runoff as the clear favorite.
61 million take part in the election
A few hours ago, a news agency close to the opposition saw Erdogan ahead. According to this, after the opening of around 87 percent of the ballot boxes, the incumbent led with around 50.6 percent, just ahead of Kilicdaroglu with 49.4 percent.
Around 61 million people were called to vote in Turkey. Eligible voters in Germany and other countries have already voted. Sunday also marked the anniversary of the 2013 Gezi protests critical of the government.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
