Erdogan's party suffers historic loss in Türkiye municipal elections
Photo: Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Getty Images)
President of Türkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan suffered an unprecedented defeat in the elections from the main opposition party since he came to power more than two decades ago, according to Bloomberg.
According to preliminary results, Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AK) fell behind the main opposition Republican People’s Party, known as CHP, in Sunday’s municipal elections on March 31 for the first time ever. Support for AKP stood at 35.5%, while CHP was leading the race with 37.7%, with almost 100% of the ballots counted.
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AKP was expected to win the mayor’s seat in 24 cities, compared to 39 in 2019. CHP was leading the race in 35 provinces, compared with 21 in the last election.
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Erdogan acknowledged defeat in a speech to his supporters in front of the AKP headquarters in Ankara, pledging “self-criticism”.
“The March 31 elections mark a turning point. We weren’t able to get the results in local elections that we were hoping for,” Erdogan said.
Sunday’s results are set to boost the popularity of Ekrem Imamoglu, as the opposition mayor of Istanbul declared victory with more than 11-percentage-point margin.
The vote is seen as a broader battle between Türkiye's two most prominent political adversaries. Imamoglu gained control of Istanbul in 2019, bringing to an end Erdogan’s 25-year-long control of the city. His party CHP also won in the capital city Ankara from Erdogan’s party in the same elections in a stinging defeat for Türkiye’s president.
Poll results show voters turned against the ruling party in much of the country, but the change was more dramatic in urban areas. That was mainly due to persistently high inflation even after Erdogan allowed the central bank to raise the nation’s key interest rate to 50%. Yet, authorities have to reverse the trajectory of price increases, which are running at an annual rate of just under 70%.
Türkiye elections
The local elections in Türkiye took place on Sunday, March 31. Typically, these elections are viewed by analysts as indicators of support for Erdogan and the resilience of the opposition.
On the eve of the vote, Erdogan stated that the March local elections would be the last in his political career.
The defeat of Erdogan's party could signal a shift in the country's political landscape.
