The head of state from TürkiyeRecep Tayyip Erdogan, was re-elected in the first round of the electionsthis Sunday (24), for a new mandate with reinforced powers, imposing itself on a united opposition in these hotly contested presidential and legislative elections.
Erdogan, in power for 15 years, re-elected for a new 5-year term, savored his victory, addressing thousands of supporters gathered in Ankara in the early hours of Monday in front of the headquarters of his party, the Islamist-conservative AKP. .
“The winner of these elections is democracy, the national will. The winner of these elections is each one of the 81 million of our fellow citizens,” Erdogan exclaimed amid cheers from his supporters.
Turkish electoral authorities reported in the early hours of this Monday (Sunday night in Brazil) that Erdogan had obtained an absolute majority of the votes counted, being elected in the first round in the face of a fierce and united opposition, with social democratic leader Muharrem Ince in the lead. leadership.
Since the AKP came to power in 2002, Erdogan has emerged as the most powerful Turkish leader after the republic’s founder, Mustafa Kemal, transforming the country with mega infrastructure projects and social reforms, freeing religious expression, and transforming Ankara into an actor key to diplomacy.
His critics accuse the 64-year-old “rais” of following an autocratic orientation, particularly since the July 2016 coup attempt, which was followed by a wave of merciless repression against opponents and journalists and strained relations between Ankara and the West.
His victory in this Sunday’s elections further consolidated his power, as the vote marks the transition from the current parliamentary system to a presidential regime in which the head of state concentrates all executive power, as decided in a referendum last year.
According to the state news agency Anadolu, Erdogan would have won the elections with 52.5% of the votes, with more than 99% of the votes counted, and the alliance dominated by the AKP would have obtained 53.61% of the votes in the legislative elections.