Erdogan wins Turkey’s presidential election for historic third term

Kathmandu: Recep Tayyip Erdogan has won Turkey’s presidential election by defeating opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu in Sunday’s run-off vote and stretching his rule into a third decade.

With 99.43% of the votes counted, preliminary official results announced by Turkey’s Supreme Election Council (YSK) on Sunday showed Erdogan winning with 52.14% of the votes. Kilicdaroglu received 47.86%.

The vote seals Erdogan’s place in history as he extends his 20-year rule for a further five years. He had already outstripped the 15-year presidency of the Republic of Turkey’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

Speaking to thousands of his supporters outside the presidential complex in Ankara, Erdogan said that now was the time to ‘put aside all the debates and conflicts regarding the election period and unite around our national goals and dreams.’

World leaders have congratulated Erdogan on winning the election for historic third term. US president Joe Biden has sent his congratulations to him. ‘I look forward to continuing to work together as NATO Allies on bilateral issues and shared global challenges,’ Biden said in a tweet.

Likewise, Russian president Vladimir Putin said Erdogan’s victory was evidence that the Turkish people appreciated his ‘selfless work’ and independent foreign policy.

‘The election victory was a natural result of your selfless work as the head of the Republic of Turkey, clear evidence of the support of the Turkish people for your efforts to strengthen state sovereignty and conduct an independent foreign policy,’ Putin said in a message to Erdogan.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also took to Twitter to congratulate Erdogan on his election victory. ‘Congratulations President (Erdogan) on your re-election. I look forward to continuing our work together and preparing for the NATO summit in July,’ he tweeted.

In congratulating Erdogan, German chancellor Olaf Scholz noted how ‘deeply intertwined’ the people and economies of both countries are, adding that ‘together we want to advance our common agenda with a fresh impetus!’ Leaders of France, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine and UK have also congratulated Erdogan.