Today, polling stations for presidential and parliamentary elections have been opened across Türkiye. The citizens of the country elect not only the president, who will govern the Republic of Türkiye for the next five years, but also 600 deputies of the Turkish parliament.
Presidential candidates
The main intrigue will unfold in the presidential elections, in which three candidates participate - the incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the opposition candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and the ATA Alliance candidate Sinan Ogan. The main struggle for the highest state post is expected to unfold between Erdoğan and Kılıçdaroğlu. One of them needs to get more than 50% of the votes to win. While four candidates were running for the presidency at the beginning of the election race, three days before the election one of them, the leader of the Memleket party, Muharrem İnce, announced that he was withdrawing his candidacy. His name would remain on the ballot as the withdrawal of his candidacy was announced after the Supreme Electoral Council (YSK) officially announced the candidates' names. However, even if İnce wins over 50% of the vote and wins the elections, he will not be able to become the head of the republic.
Parliamentary candidates
Parliamentary elections are also held in the country. They involve 36 parties, some of which have formed alliances to increase the chances of winning more seats in parliament.
60 million 721 thousand 475 residents of Türkiye have the right to vote, most of them are women, there are more than 30.7 million. For the first time in their lives, about 5 million people will vote.
Voters will have to fill out a meter-long ballot, which lists five party alliances, including the ruling party's People's alliance and the opposition's Nation's alliance, which has six parties. In total, the final list of the Turkish electoral committee included 24 parties.
How to vote abroad
Voting at foreign polling stations took place from April 27 to May 9, more than 1.8 million citizens have already cast their votes for candidates, and the turnout in Turkish diplomatic missions in 73 countries has become a record, exceeding 53%.
Sealed bags with ballots from abroad were delivered by plane to Ankara, where they were kept in a five-locked room. The representatives of the four parties represented in parliament and a member of the election committee have the keys to it.
Election favorites
Pre-election polls did not reveal a clear favorite for the presidency, since they show numbers in favor of both Erdoğan and Kılıçdaroglu.
The incumbent Turkish president is expected to vote in Istanbul, where he ended his election campaign the night before, while Kılıçdaroğlu and Ogan are expected to vote in Ankara. The authorities have already tightened security measures at the polling station where Erdoğan is supposed to cast his vote. Special forces soldiers are on duty there, as well as security forces in civilian clothes who inspect the belongings of people who want to enter this territory.
On election day, the sale of alcoholic beverages is prohibited, cafes are closed, weddings are allowed to be celebrated after 18:00. According to the Hürriyet newspaper, voters voting in the general elections are prohibited from entering the voting booths with mobile phones and cameras.
The final results of the elections are to be published in the official gazette on May 19.
