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Presidential elections A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The ...
were held in
Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
in May 2023, alongside
parliamentary elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...
, to elect a
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
for a term of five years. Dubbed the most important election of 2023, the presidential election went to a run-off for the first time in Turkish history. The election had originally been scheduled to take place on 18 June, but the government moved them forward by a month to avoid coinciding with the university exams, the Hajj pilgrimage and the start of the summer holidays. It is estimated that a total of 64 million voters had the right to cast their votes in elections, 60.9 million in Turkey and 3.2 million abroad. Incumbent president
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...
of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) ran for re-election as the joint candidate of the
People's Alliance People's Alliance may refer to: * People's Alliance ( ''Volksunie''), Belgian political party which split in 2001 into the Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie and Spirit * People's Alliance (Bulgaria), a Bulgarian party from 1921 to 1923 * People's Alliance ( ...
, which includes the
Nationalist Movement Party The Nationalist Movement Party, or alternatively translated as Nationalist Action Party (, MHP), is a Turkish Far-right politics, far-right, ultranationalism, ultranationalist Political parties in Turkey, political party. The group is often de ...
(MHP) and two other smaller parties. The Nation Alliance, composed of six opposition parties including the main opposition
Republican People's Party The Republican People's Party (RPP; , CHP ) is a Kemalism, Kemalist and Social democracy, social democratic political party in Turkey. It is the oldest List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, founded by Mustafa Kemal ...
(CHP), fielded CHP leader
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu (; born 17 December 1948), also referred to by his initials KK, is a Turkish politician who served as the Leader of the Republican People's Party, leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) from 2010 to 2023. He was Lis ...
as its presidential candidate. Though not part of the alliance, the pro-Kurdish
Party of Greens and the Left Future Party of Greens and the Left Future (, YSGP), abbreviated as Green Left Party (, YSP), is a green and left-libertarian party in Turkey. History The first YSP was founded on 25 November 2012 as a merger of the Greens Party and the Equality a ...
(YSGP) and the
Labour and Freedom Alliance The Labour and Freedom Alliance ( Turkish: ''Emek ve Özgürlük İttifakı'', Kurdish: ''Hevkariya Ked û Azadiyê'') is a left-wing electoral alliance in Turkey, formed by Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Parti), Peoples' Democratic ...
(of which it is a member) endorsed Kılıçdaroğlu. Two other minor candidates, namely Homeland Party leader
Muharrem İnce Muharrem İnce (; born 4 May 1964) is a Turkish physics teacher, school principal, sport executive, and politician. He is the founder and the incumbent leader of the Homeland Party since May 2021. Formerly a four term Republican People's Party ...
and
anti-immigration Opposition to immigration, also known as anti-immigration, is a political position that seeks to restrict immigration. In the modern sense, immigration refers to the entry of people from one state or territory into another state or territory in ...
ultranationalist Ancestral Alliance nominee
Sinan Oğan Sinan Oğan (born 1 September 1967) is a Turkish politician who won a seat in the Turkish parliament in 2011 with the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). He was the presidential candidate of ATA Alliance for the 2023 Turkish presidentia ...
, also reached the required 100,000 signatures to stand; however, three days before the election, İnce withdrew from the election citing consistent slander and smear campaigns against him by rival candidates, though he still appeared on ballots. The main campaign issues revolved around the deadly February
2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...
, which left over 50,000 people dead and threatened to postpone the election date. The government was criticised by opposition politicians for its slow response to the earthquake and land amnesties prior to it that critics claimed left buildings more vulnerable. The
economy An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...
also featured prominently due to the rapidly rising
cost of living The cost of living is the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living for an individual or a household. Changes in the cost of living over time can be measured in a cost-of-living index. Cost of living calculations are also used to compare t ...
. In most polls, voters identified the economy as their prime area of concern. In the first round Erdoğan and Oğan outperformed expectations to receive 49.5% and 5.2% of the vote respectively, while Kılıçdaroğlu received 44.9% and Muharrem İnce (who remained on the ballot despite withdrawing) 0.4%. As Erdoğan's vote share was 0.5% short of winning outright, he and Kılıçdaroğlu contested a run-off vote on 28 May. Oğan endorsed Erdoğan, while the elements of Ancestral Alliance split their support, as Victory Party leader
Ümit Özdağ Ümit Özdağ (; born 3 March 1961, Tokyo) is a Turkish politician and the current leader of the Victory Party. He was deputy leader of the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) from November 2015 to February 2016. He announced his candid ...
endorsed Kılıçdaroğlu and My Country Party leader Neşet Doğan endorsed Erdoğan. Erdoğan would be re-elected to a third term with 52.2% of the vote in the runoff. This was incumbent President's Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's eleventh election victory in a row going back to his election as
Mayor of Istanbul The mayor of Istanbul is the head of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. The mayor is elected popularly every five years. Nuri Aslan has served as interim mayor of Istanbul since 26 March 2025. This article covers the Ottoman Empire to the ...
in
1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...
. His victory was seen as a continuation of his nearly three-decades dominance over Turkish politics. In contrast, following Kılıçdaroğlu's narrow defeat, he was voted out as the leader of the CHP in November.


Background


2018 elections

The previous Turkish general election took place on 24 June 2018. The election marked the country's transition from a
parliamentary system A parliamentary system, or parliamentary democracy, is a form of government where the head of government (chief executive) derives their Election, democratic legitimacy from their ability to command the support ("confidence") of a majority of t ...
to a presidential one, as narrowly endorsed by voters in the controversial 2017 constitutional referendum. That election resulted in a victory for incumbent president
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...
, who had held the position since 2014. Meanwhile, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lost its absolute majority in the
Grand National Assembly of Turkey The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( ), usually referred to simply as the GNAT or TBMM, also referred to as , in Turkish, is the Unicameralism, unicameral Turkey, Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by ...
for the first time since June 2015, forcing it to rely on its coalition partner, the
Nationalist Movement Party The Nationalist Movement Party, or alternatively translated as Nationalist Action Party (, MHP), is a Turkish Far-right politics, far-right, ultranationalism, ultranationalist Political parties in Turkey, political party. The group is often de ...
(MHP) of
Devlet Bahçeli Devlet Bahçeli (born 1 January 1948) is a Turkish people, Turkish politician, economist, former Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey, deputy prime minister, and current chairman of the Far-right politics, far-right, Ultranationalism, ultranationa ...
, to pass legislation.


Date

The regular scheduled date for the first round of the elections was set for 18 June 2023. However, the electoral system allowed for moving the date forward. In 2020, there was speculation about a snap election prior to the regular one in 2023. At the time,
Devlet Bahçeli Devlet Bahçeli (born 1 January 1948) is a Turkish people, Turkish politician, economist, former Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey, deputy prime minister, and current chairman of the Far-right politics, far-right, Ultranationalism, ultranationa ...
, the leader of coalition partner MHP, ruled them out. In a written statement, he said that elections would not be held before 2023. He also confirmed that the current coalition between AKP and MHP will remain intact and
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...
will be their joint nominee for President.


Discussion on snap elections

In early January 2023 the AKP mentioned eventual snap elections to take place on either on 16 or 30 April or on 14 May. But the so-called "
Table of Six The Nation Alliance (), abbreviated as NATION (), was an electoral alliance, electoral and political alliance in Turkey, made up of six opposition parties to contest the 2023 Turkish general election against its main rival, the People's Allianc ...
" composed by six opposition parties announced that they would not agree to snap elections after 6 April. On 18 January 2023, Erdoğan, the President of Turkey, signalled that the elections will be held earlier than the scheduled date, specifically on 14 May 2023, in a symbolic reference to the election victory of former Prime Minister
Adnan Menderes Ali Adnan Ertekin Menderes (; 1899 – 17 September 1961) was a Turkish politician who served as Prime Minister of Turkey between 1950 and 1960. He was one of the founders of the Democrat Party (DP) in 1946, the fourth legal opposition party of ...
on 14 May in the
1950 Turkish general election General elections were held in Turkey on 14 May 1950, using the multiple non-transferable vote electoral system.Dieter Nohlen, Florian Grotz & Christof Hartmann (2001) ''Elections in Asia: A data handbook, Volume I'', p238 The result was a land ...
, defeating the candidate of the then governing CHP party. On 22 January 2023, Erdoğan stated that the elections will be held on 14 May. In view of that date, the "Table of Six" announced that Erdoğan cannot run for president without parliamentary consent.


Discussion on postponing election date

After a devastating earthquake struck the country in February 2023, Erdoğan announced a state of emergency for 10 affected provinces, which would end a week ahead of the election date of the 14 May. The opposition voted against the imposition in parliament. Then on 13 February 2023,
Bülent Arınç Bülent Arınç (; born 25 May 1948) is a conservative Turkish politician. He served as the 22nd Speaker of the Parliament of Turkey from 2002 to 2007 and as a Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey between 2009 and 2015. He also co-founded the Just ...
, a former AKP Member of Parliament, alleged the elections could not be held in the current situation in either May or June, and the elections should be postponed. AKP spokesperson Ömer Çelik responded that Arınç's statement is his own personal view and does not bind the party.
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu (; born 17 December 1948), also referred to by his initials KK, is a Turkish politician who served as the Leader of the Republican People's Party, leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) from 2010 to 2023. He was Lis ...
from the opposition party
Republican People's Party The Republican People's Party (RPP; , CHP ) is a Kemalism, Kemalist and Social democracy, social democratic political party in Turkey. It is the oldest List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, founded by Mustafa Kemal ...
(CHP) responded to Arınç's statement that the constitution would not provide a possibility to postpone the elections except in the case of war. Further, Mustafa Tolga Öztürk from the
Good Party The Good Party (Turkish language, Turkish: ''İYİ Parti'') is a Turkish nationalism, nationalist, Kemalism, Kemalist and Conservatism, conservative List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, established on 25 October 2017 b ...
reasoned only the parliament has the authority to postpone elections and
Selahattin Demirtaş Selahattin Demirtaş (born 10 April 1973) is a Kurdish politician, lawyer and author. He was the co-leader of the left-wing pro- Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), serving alongside Figen Yüksekdağ from 2014 to 2018. Selahattin Demirt ...
from the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) suspected such a measure would result in a political coup.


Election calendar

The Supreme Election Council announced the following election calendar for the 2023 presidential elections and the parliamentary elections. * 18 March: The Supreme Election Council announces the official start of the election cycle. * 19 March: Submission of candidacy applications to the Supreme Election Council. * 20 March: Independent presidential candidates can apply until 17.00. Applications of independent candidates are examined by the Supreme Election Council and the candidates will be notified if their application is missing documents or other shortcomings as of 23:00. * 21 March: Independent presidential candidates whose application has been rejected by the Supreme Election Council, can appeal and request a re-examination until 17:00. ** Deadline for political parties to nominate a presidential candidate. * 28 March: Announcement of the temporary list of presidential candidates and start of appeal applications. * 31 March: Announcement of the final list of presidential candidates. * 1 April: Presentation of ballot paper with the presidential candidates. * 12 April: Finalization of the domestic and international voter registers. * 27 April: Start of voting procedures at customs gates and abroad. * 9 May: Deadline for voting abroad. * 13 May: End of election campaigning and start of
election silence Election blackout or election silence is the practice of banning political campaigning or media coverage of a general election, before or during that election. Often, the publication of opinion polls is illegal during this time. Operation In som ...
at 18:00. * 14 May: Voting day. Announcement of the temporary results of the presidential election at 23:59. * 19 May: Announcement of the final election results by the Supreme Election Council. In case of a two-rounded presidential election: * 15 May: Start of election campaigning for the second round of the presidential election. * 20 May: Start of voting procedures at customs gates and abroad. * 24 May: Deadline for voting abroad. * 27 May: End of election campaigning and start of
election silence Election blackout or election silence is the practice of banning political campaigning or media coverage of a general election, before or during that election. Often, the publication of opinion polls is illegal during this time. Operation In som ...
at 18:00. * 28 May: Voting day. Second round of the presidential election. * 29 May: Announcement of the temporary results of the presidential election. * 1 June: Announcement of the final results of the presidential election.


Electoral system

The
President of Turkey The president of Turkey, officially the president of the Republic of Türkiye (), is the head of state and head of government of Turkey. The president directs the executive branch of the national government and is the commander-in-chief of the ...
is directly elected through the
two-round system The two-round system (TRS or 2RS), sometimes called ballotage, top-two runoff, or two-round plurality, is a single-winner electoral system which aims to elect a member who has support of the majority of voters. The two-round system involves one ...
, under which a candidate must obtain a
simple majority Simple majority may refer to: * Majority, a voting requirement of more than half of all votes cast * Plurality (voting), a voting requirement of more votes cast for a proposition than for any other option * First-past-the-post voting, the single-win ...
(more than 50%) of the popular vote to be elected. If no candidate secures an overall majority outright, then a runoff is held between the two most voted-for candidates from the first round, the winner of which is then declared elected. The first direct election to the Turkish presidency was held in 2014, after a referendum in 2007 abolished the previous system under which the head of state was elected by the legislature chamber, the
Grand National Assembly of Turkey The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( ), usually referred to simply as the GNAT or TBMM, also referred to as , in Turkish, is the Unicameralism, unicameral Turkey, Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by ...
. The President of Turkey is subject to term limits, and may serve at most two five-year terms. If snap elections were held before the end of the second term, a third term would be permitted. Snap elections can be held either with the consent of 60% of the MPs in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey or ordered by presidential decree. Only snap elections via the consent of the Grand National Assembly during a president's second term can allow the president to serve a third term. Prospective presidential candidates must be at least 40 years old and must have completed higher education. Any political party that has won 5% of the vote in the previous parliamentary election can put forward a candidate, although parties that have not met this threshold can form alliances and field joint candidates as long as their total vote share exceeds 5%. Independents can run if they collect 100,000 signatures from the electorate. Elections are overseen by the Supreme Election Council (YSK).


Candidates


Candidates

*
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...
, incumbent
President of Turkey The president of Turkey, officially the president of the Republic of Türkiye (), is the head of state and head of government of Turkey. The president directs the executive branch of the national government and is the commander-in-chief of the ...
(2014–present), leader of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) **Supported by:
People's Alliance People's Alliance may refer to: * People's Alliance ( ''Volksunie''), Belgian political party which split in 2001 into the Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie and Spirit * People's Alliance (Bulgaria), a Bulgarian party from 1921 to 1923 * People's Alliance ( ...
*
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu (; born 17 December 1948), also referred to by his initials KK, is a Turkish politician who served as the Leader of the Republican People's Party, leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) from 2010 to 2023. He was Lis ...
, leader of
Republican People's Party The Republican People's Party (RPP; , CHP ) is a Kemalism, Kemalist and Social democracy, social democratic political party in Turkey. It is the oldest List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, founded by Mustafa Kemal ...
, leader of the opposition. He was announced the candidate by the opposition alliance "
Table of Six The Nation Alliance (), abbreviated as NATION (), was an electoral alliance, electoral and political alliance in Turkey, made up of six opposition parties to contest the 2023 Turkish general election against its main rival, the People's Allianc ...
" on 6 March 2023. **Supported by: Nation Alliance,
Labour and Freedom Alliance The Labour and Freedom Alliance ( Turkish: ''Emek ve Özgürlük İttifakı'', Kurdish: ''Hevkariya Ked û Azadiyê'') is a left-wing electoral alliance in Turkey, formed by Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Parti), Peoples' Democratic ...
*
Muharrem İnce Muharrem İnce (; born 4 May 1964) is a Turkish physics teacher, school principal, sport executive, and politician. He is the founder and the incumbent leader of the Homeland Party since May 2021. Formerly a four term Republican People's Party ...
, leader of the Homeland Party, candidate for president in
2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
'.'''' *
Sinan Oğan Sinan Oğan (born 1 September 1967) is a Turkish politician who won a seat in the Turkish parliament in 2011 with the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). He was the presidential candidate of ATA Alliance for the 2023 Turkish presidentia ...
, former member of the parliament from MHP (2011–2015) (''running as Independent'') ** Supported by Ancestral Alliance On 1 April, after a drawing conducted by the Supreme Electoral Council, the places of four presidential candidates on the ballot paper were determined as follows:


Nominations

According to article 101 of the
Constitution of Turkey The Constitution of Turkey, formally known as the Constitution of the Republic of Türkiye (), and informally as the Constitution of 1982 (), is Turkey's fundamental law. It establishes the organization of the government, and sets out the pr ...
, amended following the 2017 constitutional referendum, any political party that has won 5% of the vote in the previous parliamentary election can put forward a candidate. The remaining candidates were required to collect at least 100,000 signatures. Voters were able to give signatures to their preferred presidential candidate between 22 and 27 March at their local electoral council branch. On 24 March, the
New Welfare Party The New Welfare Party (, YRP) is an Islamist and ultraconservative political party in Turkey, founded on 23 November 2018. The party positions itself as the successor to the Welfare Party ( Turkish: ''Refah Partisi''), which was a prominent Isla ...
decided to join the People's Alliance. After this decision, Fatih Erbakan announced that he had ended the candidacy process in favour of Erdoğan.


Endorsements


Parties and alliances


Second round

The first round of elections showed a shift further to the nationalist sentiment.


Negotiations by Oğan and Özdağ

Oğan said that "
Turkish nationalists Turkish nationalism () is nationalism among the people of Turkey and individuals whose national identity is Turkish. Turkish nationalism consists of political and social movements and sentiments prompted by a love for Turkish culture, Turkish ...
and Atatürk supporters will be the decision-makers in the second round". Oğan demanded that he doesn't want any party, that he considers connected to terrorism, to have any role in the government. He is against the presence of a Kurdish party in the "political equation". He mentioned two parties specifically: HÜDA PAR, a Kurdish Islamist party allied with Erdoğan, and the pro-Kurdish HDP, which supported Kılıçdaroğlu. If Kılıçdaroğlu signed a protocol he would not make concessions to the HDP, he could receive Oğan's support. On 19 May, Kılıçdaroğlu visited the headquarters of the Victory Party and met with its leader Özdağ. The same day, Oğan met Erdoğan for negotiations, while Erdoğan told
CNN International Cable News Network International or CNN International (CNNi, simply branded on-air as CNN) is an international television channel and website, owned by CNN Worldwide. CNN International carries news-related programming worldwide; it cooperates ...
he "would not bow to Oğan's wishes", adding he's "not the kind of person who likes to bargain like this". Bahçeli published a message on the occasion of the
Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day The Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day (), is an annual Turkish national holiday celebrated on May 19 to commemorate Mustafa Kemal's landing at Samsun on May 19, 1919, which is regarded as the beginning of the Turkish War of Indep ...
; alluding to Oğan, he said "those who pretend to have non-existent political power and turn politics into a horse market are opportunistic weaklings". On 22 May, AKP deputy chairman
Numan Kurtulmuş Numan Kurtulmuş (born 15 September 1959) is a Turkish politician and academic who is currently the speaker of the Grand National Assembly. He served as Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey in the 62nd, 63rd, 64th and 65th AKP governments between ...
visited Özdağ at Victory Party headquarters, where he stated that they shared similar ideas with the Victory Party on various issues such as national security and noted they hoped the party would support Erdogan in the second round. The same day, Özdağ and Kılıçdaroğlu came together for the second time. During the meeting, Özdağ presented a memorandum of understanding to Kılıçdaroğlu. Özdağ's main terms included "continuation of the trustee practice for the fight against terrorism" and "forcibly returning the immigrants within a year if necessary". He also said that they're "still trying to close the gates of hell", referring to Oğan's old quote.


Dissolution of ATA Alliance

On 21 May, it was announced that Kılıçdaroğlu would visit the Justice Party headquarters on 22 May. The same day, its leader Vecdet Öz announced his support of Kılıçdaroğlu, saying "it is essential to get rid of the current government", and adding that "staying neutral means giving indirect support to the current government". Later, Öz announced that the alliance has officially ended.


Endorsement of Erdoğan by Oğan

On 22 May, Oğan announced his endorsement of Erdoğan for the second round, while Özdağ stated that Oğan's statement doesn't bind the Victory Party. Later Erdoğan thanked Oğan, and added that there was "absolutely no bargaining" between them.


Özdağ's support for Kılıçdaroğlu

On 24 May, Özdağ announced his support for Kılıçdaroğlu. They signed a seven-point protocol, which reads as follows: * The first four articles of our Constitution and the definition and content of Turkish Citizenship in Article 66 will be preserved. * The national-unitary-secular state established in 1924 will never be compromised. * All asylum seekers and fugitives, especially Syrians, will be sent back to their countries within one year at the latest. * All terrorist organizations targeting the existence and integrity of the state, especially FETÖ, PKK and ISIS, will be fought effectively and decisively. Within the framework of the fight against terrorism, the practice of appointing state officials instead of local administrators whose links with terrorism are proven by legal evidence will continue within the framework of judicial decision. Terrorism will be fought, not negotiated. No political and legal arrangements targeting the national and unitary state structure of Turkey will be allowed. * In assignments to be made in all units of the state, it will be ensured that merit, not loyalty, is the basis. * All corruption will be dealt with very effectively within the framework of the law. * It is fully agreed that the state should be transparent and open to its citizens. The fourth article in the protocol, created some concerns especially among HDP voter base and raised the question of whether they will boycott the election. Next day, nevertheless, HDP and Green Left Party have announced that they will continue to support Kılıçdaroğlu in the second round, and said they "will change the one-man regime". HDP co-chair
Pervin Buldan Pervin Buldan (born 6 November 1967) is a Kurdish politician from Turkey. She was a member of the Democratic Society Party (DTP). She was President of Yakay-Der and one of the deputy speakers in the 26th Parliament of Turkey. On 11 February 2 ...
said "We never get stuck with Ümit Özdağ's racist and fascist statements. The main thing for us is the promises made by Mr. Kılıçdaroğlu to the society." The Good Party leader Meral Akşener said "there is nothing in that protocol that bothers us".


Erdoğan's strategy

He was scheduled to meet with the victims of recent earthquakes to show his solidarity and commitment.


Kılıçdaroğlu's strategy

According to journalist İsmail Saymaz, Kılıçdaroğlu was going to adopt a more aggressive language until 28 May and the AK Party would be attacked over the relationship between HÜDA PAR and Hezbollah. A counter stance would be taken regarding terrorism and security policies. The issue of Syrians and illegal immigrants would be highlighted. On 18 May, Kılıçdaroğlu told supporters that the influx of refugees threatens their survival, and vowed to repatriate millions of refugees to their home countries. Kılıçdaroğlu claimed that Erdoğan, has "deliberately allowed ten million refugees into Turkey" and has put "Turkish citizenship on sale to get imported votes".


Potential debate

Due to the accusations of who was a supporter of terrorists, which both contenders deem the other to be, Kılıçdaroğlu suggested holding a debate, but Erdoğan refused on the grounds that Kılıçdaroğlu wants to become famous.


Controversies


Erdoğan's right to seek re-election

Before the 2018 elections, Turkish presidents were serving as
heads of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 "
he head of state He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...
being an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...
within a
parliamentary system A parliamentary system, or parliamentary democracy, is a form of government where the head of government (chief executive) derives their Election, democratic legitimacy from their ability to command the support ("confidence") of a majority of t ...
. After the 2017 constitutional referendum, Turkey adopted a
presidential system A presidential, strong-president, or single-executive system (sometimes also congressional system) is a form of government in which a head of government (usually titled " president") heads an executive branch that derives its authority and l ...
in which the president serves as the
head of government In the Executive (government), executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the second-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presid ...
. Some opposition politicians state that since Erdoğan was elected president twice in 2014 and 2018, he cannot be a candidate again unless an early election is called by the Parliament, as stated in Article 116 of the constitution. Some jurists argue that since the presidential system was introduced in 2018 and a new office was formed apart from the similarity in name, the 2018 election was Erdoğan's first term in the new system and that he has the right to be a candidate again.


Political violence

On 10 March, CHP parliamentary group deputy chair
Özgür Özel Özgür Özel () (born 21 September 1974) is a Turkish pharmacist and politician who has served as Leader of the Republican People's Party, leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) since 2023. He had previously shared the parliamentary group ...
claimed that Kılıçdaroğlu received assassination threats by unknown groups and was offered a minister's armoured vehicle by the government, but he rejected the proposal and kept his official car. On 7 May, Istanbul Mayor
Ekrem İmamoğlu Ekrem İmamoğlu (born 4 June 1970) is a Turkish politician and businessman who has served as the 32nd Mayor of Istanbul since 2019. He is currently suspended from office temporarily. He is the Republican People's Party (CHP) candidate for the ...
was attacked during a rally in
Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. It is the site of an ...
. His rally was interrupted due to stones thrown from the crowd. After the attack, İmamoğlu supporters rushed to the
Sabiha Gökçen Airport Sabiha is an Arabic word () meaning "Morning" and a female given name. People with the name include: *Sabiha Sultan (1894–1971), Ottoman princess, daughter of Mehmed VI *Sabiha Bengütaş (1904–1992), Turkish sculptor *Sabiha Gökçen (1913–2 ...
in Istanbul to welcome and show support for him. Erzurum's mayor Mehmet Sekmen said that there was no written application made from Republican People's Party's provincial chairmanship to hold a rally in Erzurum, and it was İmamoğlu "was the one who created the chaos by rallying in Erzurum". The Interior Minister
Süleyman Soylu Süleyman Soylu (; born 21 November 1969) is a Turkish politician. He is a deputy chairman of the Justice and Development Party. He previously served as the Minister of Labour and Social Security from November 2015 to August 2016 and the Minis ...
said that the incident was planned by İmamoğlu to aggravate the crowds. On 12 May, extensive security measures were taken before and during Kılıçdaroğlu's rally in
Samsun Samsun is a List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, city on the north coast of Turkey and a major Black Sea port. The urban area recorded a population of 738,692 in 2022. The city is the capital of Samsun Province which has a population of ...
following the rumours of assassination attempts of Kılıçdaroğlu. Citizens who wanted to attend the rally held in Republic Square were searched twice. Snipers were placed on the roofs of buildings located around the square. İmamoğlu and Kılıçdaroğlu, who took the stage to make their speeches, were seen wearing bulletproof vests. While Kılıçdaroğlu was giving his speech, a large guard group accompanied him on the stage armed. While visiting the burials of citizens who lost their lives during the earthquake in
Adıyaman Province Adıyaman Province (, ) is a Provinces of Turkey, province in the Southeastern Anatolia Region of Turkey. The capital is Adıyaman. Its area is 7,337 km2, and its population is 635,169 (2022). The province is considered part of Turkish Kurdi ...
, Kılıçdaroğlu was subjected to a verbal attack while he was reciting
Al-Fatiha Al-Fatiha () is the first chapter () of the Quran. It consists of seven verses (') which consist of a prayer for guidance and mercy. Al-Fatiha is recited in Muslim obligatory and voluntary prayers, known as ''salah''. The primary literal mea ...
. The same day, another person attempted a physical attack. Two days after the attack on İmamoğlu, Kılıçdaroğlu's vehicle was attacked with stones in Sakarya. The 15-year-old attacker was released after Kılıçdaroğlu decided not to press charges and he also asked for the anonymity of the child's identity.


Erdoğan's photo on ballot paper

Erdoğan appeared with the same photograph on the ballot paper as the one he used for the presidential elections in 2014 and
2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
.


Fake videos

On the Sunday before the elections Erdoğan showed an altered version of an election commercial belonging to his main challenger Kılıçdaroğlu. This commercial was edited with footage of Murat Karayılan, one of the founders of the PKK, in an attempt to link Kilicdaroglu with the PKK. In a television interview, Erdoğan was asked about the footage. He replied that it did not matter whether it was manipulated or not, and insisted that the claim the video made was nevertheless true. Similarly, presidential spokesman
İbrahim Kalın İbrahim Kalın (born 15 September 1971) is a Turkish bureaucrat and academic who is the current director of the National Intelligence Organization (MİT). An academic specialising in Islamic philosophy, Kalın received his doctorate under the su ...
said "Video edited by a group of witty young people. The elements put together in the video are real". Kılıçdaroğlu called Erdoğan "fraudulent video fabricator". Kılıçdaroğlu also filed a 1 million TRY non-pecuniary damage lawsuit against Erdoğan through his lawyer Celal Çelik. On 25 May, the Ankara 6th Criminal Court of Peace blocked access to a troll account that shared fake footage used by Erdoğan during the election process, on the grounds that it "attacks personal rights". An allegedly fake sex video purporting to portray Muharrem İnce was circulated before he dropped out of the race. İnce claimed that
deepfake ''Deepfakes'' (a portmanteau of and ) are images, videos, or audio that have been edited or generated using artificial intelligence, AI-based tools or AV editing software. They may depict real or fictional people and are considered a form of ...
technology had been used to make the video and stated he had suffered "
character assassination Character assassination (CA) is a deliberate and sustained effort to damage the reputation or credibility of an individual. The term ''character assassination'' became popular around 1930. This concept, as a subject of scholarly study, was origi ...
" and blamed the country's journalists and public prosecutors for not protecting him from the "fury of
slander Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making wikt:asserti ...
". Erdoğan phoned İnce to express his support and condemned the video, calling the video " Gülenist tactics" as seen in the past.


Block of Ekşi Sözlük

One day before the election, the website Ekşi Sözlük was blocked from access reasoned as "for the protection of national security and public order".


Twitter censorship

On the eve of the election,
Elon Musk Elon Reeve Musk ( ; born June 28, 1971) is a businessman. He is known for his leadership of Tesla, SpaceX, X (formerly Twitter), and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Musk has been considered the wealthiest person in th ...
's
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
restricted access within Turkey to accounts that were critical of Erdoğan at the request of the Turkish government.


Reporting of the results

On election night, the CHP complained about reports of Erdogan leading in the polls by the
Anadolu Agency Anadolu Agency (, ; abbreviated AA) is a state-run news agency headquartered in Ankara, Turkey. History The Anadolu Agency was founded in 1920 during the Turkish War of Independence by the order of Mustafa Kemal Pasha. As the Empire's capital � ...
and produced its own numbers that held Kilicdaroglu as the leading candidate. After Ömer Çelik of the AKP accused the CHP of trying to seize the will of the nation,
Ekrem İmamoğlu Ekrem İmamoğlu (born 4 June 1970) is a Turkish politician and businessman who has served as the 32nd Mayor of Istanbul since 2019. He is currently suspended from office temporarily. He is the Republican People's Party (CHP) candidate for the ...
of the CHP justified the reports of the opposition as they had learned from the past. Anadolu is known to show the governing AKP as the leader with a large advantage in the first hours. The first results mainly come from smaller rural towns, where Erdogan and his AK party are generally popular. There were also criticisms directed at the slow pace of counting ballots cast abroad. At the time of 90% of domestic ballots were counted, only 30.8% of ballots from abroad had been counted. Ahmet Yener of the Supreme Election Council said these delays were "normal" and that the increase in the number of ballots and contesting parties slowed counting. The YSP demanded a repetition of the election for Gaziantep, where according to the YSP two thousand potential YSP voters were not able to vote as they were inscribed as members of the ballot committee by the
Patriotic Party The Patriotic Party (), also known as the Patriot Party or, in English, as the Reform Party, was a political movement in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the period of the Four-Year Sejm (Great Sejm) of 1788–1792, whose chief achieveme ...
(VP) without informing them. The request was deemed an unreasonable objection by the provincial election presidency.


Azerbaijani and Russian interference allegations

A few days before the first round, Kılıçdaroğlu and the CHP accused
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
of foreign electoral interference, claiming it to be the source of many "
plot Plot or Plotting may refer to: Art, media and entertainment * Plot (narrative), the connected story elements of a piece of fiction Music * ''The Plot'' (album), a 1976 album by jazz trumpeter Enrico Rava * The Plot (band), a band formed in 2003 ...
s, montages and
deepfakes ''Deepfakes'' (a portmanteau of and ) are images, videos, or audio that have been edited or generated Generative artificial intelligence, using artificial intelligence, AI-based tools or AV editing software. They may depict real or fictional p ...
". The
Russian Government The Russian Government () or fully titled the Government of the Russian Federation () is the highest federal executive governmental body of the Russian Federation. It is accountable to the president of the Russian Federation and controlled by ...
rejected the claims. After Oğan's endorsement of Erdoğan, journalist Demirağ claimed that Azerbaijani president
Ilham Aliyev Ilham Heydar Oghlu Aliyev (born 24 December 1961) is an Azerbaijani politician who has been the fourth president of Azerbaijan since 2003. He is also the leader of the New Azerbaijan Party since 2005. The son and second child of former Aze ...
arranged the meeting between Erdoğan and Oğan.
Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (, İBB) is the government agency in charge of the municipal affairs of the Istanbul Province. It is one of the 30 metropolitan municipalities in Turkey. History The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality ...
assembly member, Good Party group deputy chairman İbrahim Özkan criticized Oğan, saying that "he ğanwill do whatever Aliyev says". Azerbaijani journalist Afgan Mukhtarli said that "pro-Aliyev media and trolls" campaigned against Kılıçdaroğlu, and adding that "Oğan has close relations with the Azerbaijani government", and that "Aliyev's role is certain in Oğan's decision". A journalist asked Oğan if he met with Aliyev before taking this decision. Upon the question Oğan said that his interlocutors are Erdoğan and Kılıçdaroğlu. On 23 May, Adil Aliyev, deputy chairman of the
National Assembly of Azerbaijan The National Assembly (), also transliterated as Milli Mejlis, is the legislative branch of government in Azerbaijan. The unicameral National Assembly has 125 deputies: previously 100 members were elected for five-year terms in single-seat co ...
, made a propaganda speech on behalf of the People's Alliance in Melekli district of
Iğdır Iğdır (; or ; ; or ) is a city in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey. It is the seat of Iğdır Province and Iğdır District.
, Oğan's hometown.


Opinion polls


First round


Second round


Results

As no candidate was able to secure a majority of votes, a runoff took place between the top two finishers, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, on 28 May. Erdoğan, the incumbent president coming into the election, received 49.52% of the vote, down from 52.59% in the last elections. Votes for Oğan pushed the race into a run-off. In the second round, the turnout rate in abroad and customs increased from 53.8% to 54.35%, and despite trailing in a dozen opinion polls prior to the first round of the election, the
Supreme Election Council declared Erdoğan the winner after 99.4% of the votes were counted in the second round, as the remaining votes to be counted were unable to bridge the difference between him and Kılıçdaroğlu. Erdoğan received 52.18% of the vote.


Aftermath


Domestic

Erdoğan expressed his thanks to his supporters in a speech in Istanbul, saying that all 85 million citizens of the country were the "victors" in the elections, while taunting his opponent's defeat with the words "Bye, bye, bay Kemal" ("bay" means "mr." in Turkish and has the same pronunciation as "bye"). Kılıçdaroğlu conceded defeat, saying, "My real sadness is about difficulties awaiting this country." He vowed to continue fighting against Erdoğan. He urged his supporters to continue to fight to uphold democratic principles and expressed frustration at the massive influx of refugees in his country, commenting that "Turkish people have become second class citizens." Özdağ described the election results a
pyrrhic victory A Pyrrhic victory ( ) is a victory that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to defeat. Such a victory negates any true sense of achievement or damages long-term progress. The phrase originates from a quote from ...
. He also stated that Erdoğan won largely thanks to foreign voters, adding "the Victory Party is determined not to congratulate Erdoğan". The Ecumenical Patriarch,
Bartholomew I Bartholomew (born Dimitrios Archontonis, 29 February 1940) is the current Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople since 1991. In accordance with his title, he is regarded as the ''primus inter pares'' (first among equals) in the Eastern Orthodox ...
sent a congratulatory message to the re-elected President.


International

International markets responded to Erdoğan's victory with concern; economists continued to worry about Erdoğan's abnormal economic policies and the
Turkish lira The lira (; Currency sign, sign: Turkish lira sign, ₺; ISO 4217, ISO 4217 code: TRY; abbreviation: TL) is the official currency of Turkey. It is also legal tender in the ''de facto'' state of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. One lira i ...
fell to its lowest value in history. After Erdoğan was declared elected, President of the European Council
Charles Michel Charles Michel (; born 21 December 1975) is a Belgian politician who served as the president of the European Council from 2019 to 2024. He previously served as the Prime Minister of Belgium, prime minister of Belgium between 2014 and 2019. Miche ...
congratulated Erdogan, stating that he "looks forward to working with you again to deepen EU-Turkey relations in the years to come." Kubanychbek Omuraliev, Secretary General of the
Organization of Turkic States The Organization of Turkic States (OTS), formerly called the Turkic Council or the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States, is an intergovernmental organization comprising all but one of the internationally recognized Turkic languages, Tur ...
, said in a message, "I offer my sincere congratulations to President Erdogan for his victory in the 2nd round of the Presidential Elections of the Republic of Turkey, and wish him good luck for the Republic of Turkey, the brotherly Turkish people and the entire Turkic world." Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha wished Erdoğan success in taking his country further and prosperous in his new term. NATO Secretary General
Jens Stoltenberg Jens Stoltenberg (; born 16 March 1959) is a Norwegian politician from the Labour Party. Since 2025, he has been the Minister of Finance in the Støre Cabinet. He has previously been the prime minister of Norway and secretary general of NATO. ...
congratulated Erdogan, stating that he "looks forward to continuing our work together and preparing for the NATO summit in July". UN chief
António Guterres António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres (born 30 April 1949) is a Portuguese politician and diplomat who is serving as the ninth and current secretary-general of the United Nations since 2017. A member of the Socialist Party (Portugal), ...
congratulated Turkish President Erdogan on his reelection.


See also

*
2023 Turkish general election General elections were held in Turkey on 14 May 2023, combining 2023 Turkish presidential election, presidential elections and 2023 Turkish parliamentary election, parliamentary elections to elect 600 members of the Grand National Assembly of Tu ...
* List of elections in 2023 *
Politics of Turkey Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of status or resources. The branch of social science that studies poli ...
* Third inauguration of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan


Notes


References

{{Portal bar, Politics, Turkey
Presidential Presidential may refer to: * "Presidential" (song), a 2005 song by YoungBloodZ * Presidential Airways (charter), an American charter airline based in Florida * Presidential Airways (scheduled), an American passenger airline active in the 1980s * ...
Presidential Presidential may refer to: * "Presidential" (song), a 2005 song by YoungBloodZ * Presidential Airways (charter), an American charter airline based in Florida * Presidential Airways (scheduled), an American passenger airline active in the 1980s * ...
Presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The p ...
Presidential elections in Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan