Ankara mayor calls for snap presidential elections in Türkiye
Photo: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (Getty Images)
Opposition Mayor of Ankara Mansur Yavaş called for snap presidential elections in Türkiye. Yavaş made his statement against the backdrop of the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, the Turkish daily newspaper Cumhuriyet reports.
In particular, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, who is the main political rival of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, was arrested today.
Yavaş, for his part, noted that if this had not happened, there would not have been such a stir in the primaries of Türkiye's main opposition party to determine candidates for the likely early presidential election.
"If these events had not taken place today, perhaps there would not have been such a large participation. In other words, when you do something illegal, the reaction is very big," the mayor of Ankara said.
Yavaş expressed hope that the early elections in the country would set an example for Türkiye, adding that "tripping up your opponent" is not democratic.
"The time for snap elections has already come. Because none of these young people have seen a different government since they were born," the Mayor of Ankara summarized.
In addition to the arrest, the opposition mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoğlu, was suspended from his duties today. In particular, this was announced by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Read more about why İmamoğlu was detained and how the world reacted in our material on the topic.
