Elections in Turkey: Citizens choose between incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his opponent Kemal Kilicdaroglu
Turks vote on Sunday, May 28, in the second round of presidential elections, with a choice between current President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his opponent Kemal Kilicdaroglu, a ballot that will decide whether the president will extend his reign for a third decade, reports Reuters , quoted by news.ro.
Turkey will find out on Sunday whether it continues five more years with Recep Erdogan, the Islamist president in power for two decades, or whether the opposition alliance led by Kemal Kilicdaroglu can pull off a miracle and win the battle for Turkey's very soul.
In the first round of voting on May 14, Recep Tayyip Erdogan won 49.5% of the vote, falling short of the majority needed to avoid a second round, in a vote seen as a referendum on his autocratic regime .
Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the candidate of a six-party opposition alliance, received 44.9 percent of the vote.
Nationalist candidate Sinan Ogan came third with 5.2% support and was eliminated.
The result contradicted poll forecasts, which put Kilicdaroglu in the lead.
A referendum in 2017 narrowly approved Erdogan's initiative to expand the prerogatives of the presidency, making the president with powers over the government and eliminating the post of prime minister.
As president, Erdogan sets policy on Turkey's economy, security, domestic and international affairs.
