Presidential elections were held in

Northern Cyprus Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a ''de facto'' state that comprises the northeastern portion of the Geography of Cyprus, island of Cyprus. It is List of states with limited recognition, recognis ...

on 18 April 2010. The result was a victory for

Derviş Eroğlu Derviş Eroğlu (born 7 March 1938) is a Turkish Cypriot politician, who served as the president of Northern Cyprus from 2010National Unity Party The National Unity Party, National United Party, Party of National Unity or National Unity Front may refer to: * National United Party of Afghanistan (founded 2003) * National Unity Party (Albania) * National United Party (Armenia), defunct * Natio ...

, who received 50.38% of the vote in the first round. If no candidate had crossed the 50% threshold, a run-off would have been held on 25 April.

Background

The

International Crisis Group The International Crisis Group (ICG; also known as the Crisis Group) is a global non-profit, non-governmental organisation founded in 1995. It is a think tank, used by policymakers and academics, conducting research and analysis on global crises. ...

stated in an article titled ''Cyprus: Reunification or Partition?'', published on 30 September 2009, that the upcoming elections in April 2010, were of critical importance to the then-ongoing negotiations between Talat and

Demetris Christofias Demetris Christofias ( ; 29 August 1946 – 21 June 2019) was a Cypriot politician, who served President of Cyprus from 2008 to 2013. He was previously President of the House of Representatives from 2001 to 2008 and General Secretary of the Prog ...

to find a solution for the

Cyprus dispute The Cyprus problem, also known as the Cyprus conflict, Cyprus issue, Cyprus dispute, or Cyprus question, is an ongoing dispute between the Greek Cypriot and the Turkish Cypriot community in the north of the island of Cyprus, where troops of t ...

. It was stated that the election results could have a defining impact on the future of the island and whether it would be reunited or divided.

Candidates

The two main candidates were the current President

Mehmet Ali Talat Mehmet Ali Talat (born 6 July 1952) is a Turkish Cypriot politician who served as the president of Northern Cyprus from 2005 to 2010. Talat was the leader of the social democratic Republican Turkish Party (, CTP), from 1996 to 2005 and 2015 to ...

from the

Republican Turkish Party The Republican Turkish Party (, CTP; ) is a social-democratic political party in Northern Cyprus. The party was founded in 1970 by Ahmet Mithat Berberoğlu, a lawyer, in opposition to the leadership of Fazıl Küçük and Rauf Denktaş. On 30 ...

and the incumbent Prime Minister

(''Ulusal Birlik Partisi'', UBP). In the parliamentary election the previous year, the UBP had narrowly obtained enough seats to form a single-party government. Talat supported the negotiations for a new plan to reunify the island (and had also been in favour of the

Annan Plan The Annan Plan (), also known as the Cyprus reunification plan, was a United Nations proposal to resolve the Cyprus dispute. The different parts of the proposal were based on the argumentation put forward by each party (Turkish Cypriots and Gree ...

for Cyprus) whereas his opponent supports a "two-state solution". The other five candidates (all of them

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

) were: * Mustafa Kemal Tümkan * Arif Salih Kırdağ *

Zeki Beşiktepeli Zeki as Turkish masculine name and may refer to: * Zeki Akar (born 1944), Turkish judge * Zeki Alasya (1943-2015), Turkish actor * Zeki Demir (born 1982), Turkish karateka * Zeki Demirkubuz (born 1964), Turkish film director * Zeki Gülay (born 197 ...

* Ayhan Kaymak *

Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu (born 17 August 1953) is a Turkish Cypriot politician. He served as a member of the Assembly of the Republic representing the Lefkoşa District between 1998 and 2018. During this time, he was a member of the National Unity ...

Results

Turnout was 70%. The count on election night proceeded as follows: * 20% of the vote counted: Eroğlu at 48.9%, Talat at 43.7% * 32% of the vote counted: Eroğlu at 48.9%, Talat at 43.3% * 40% of the vote counted: Eroğlu at 49.2%, Talat at 43.3% * 48% of the vote counted: Eroğlu at 49.6%, Talat at 43.1% * 60% of the vote counted: Eroğlu at 49.7%, Talat at 43.0% * 96% of the vote counted: Eroğlu at 50.3%, Talat at 42.8% According to final results, Derviş Eroğlu got over 50% of the votes in the first round, meaning a runoff was not necessary.

Aftermath

Derviş Eroğlu of the

right-wing Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...

National Unity Party (UBP) said that he wanted to continue negotiation on the

reunification of Cyprus The Cyprus problem, also known as the Cyprus conflict, Cyprus issue, Cyprus dispute, or Cyprus question, is an ongoing dispute between the Greek Cypriot and the Turkish Cypriot community in the north of the island of Cyprus, where troops of th ...

: "My dream for a solution to the Cyprus problem continues. We will be at the negotiating table for an agreement that will continue the existence of our people in this land with honour."

References

{{Northern Cyprus elections

Presidential elections in Northern Cyprus 2010 in Northern Cyprus 2010s in Cypriot politics April 2010 in Europe