Turkey President Erdogan’s ruling party suffers setback in local election

The Turkish President’s aggressive campaigning failed to woo voters as the country’s tip toward economic recession weighed heavily on the public

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Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. Photo: like anti-Semitism after Holocaust

Published: 5:12pm, 1 Apr 2019Updated: 7:55pm, 1 Apr 2019

Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan suffered a stunning setback in local elections as his ruling AK Party lost control of the capital Ankara for the first time since the party was founded in 2001, and was on course to lose the biggest prize of all, Istanbul.

Erdogan, who has dominated Turkish politics since coming to power 16 years ago, campaigned relentlessly for two months ahead of Sunday’s vote.

But the president’s daily rallies and overwhelmingly supportive media coverage failed to win over voters in the two main cities, as Turkey’s tip toward economic recession weighed heavily on voters.

Mansur Yavas, of the Republican People’s Party, won a clear victory in Ankara. Photo: AP

Turkish broadcasters said opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) candidate Mansur Yavas had won a clear victory in Ankara. In Istanbul, the CHP was nearly 28,000 votes ahead as the last votes were being counted.

“The people have voted in favour of democracy, they have chosen democracy,” opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu said, declaring that his secularist CHP had taken Ankara and Istanbul from the AK Party (AKP) and held its Aegean coastal stronghold of Izmir, Turkey’s third largest city.

Turkey President Erdogan’s ruling party suffers setback in local election

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}The Turkish President’s aggressive campaigning failed to woo voters as the country’s tip toward economic recession weighed heavily on the public

The Turkish President’s aggressive campaigning failed to woo voters as the country’s tip toward economic recession weighed heavily on the public