Turkish Opposition Makes Kilicdaroglu Erdogan Challenge London Punishment For Everard Killers For Exposing Women

Turkish opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu is running against incumbent Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the presidential election scheduled for mid-May. The 74-year-old was named a fellow candidate by an alliance of six parties in the capital Ankara on Monday. There has been a battle for the nomination in recent days. There will also be parliamentary elections on 14 May, at the same time as the election of the head of state. Erdogan (69) has been in power for 20 years. According to polls, he should fear this time for his re-election.

Kilicdaroglu announced that if successful, he would nominate the leaders of the other five parties as vice presidents. Thousands of supporters cheered the six politicians on their joint performance. Kilcidaroglu also campaigned for other supporters: “The door of the national alliance is wide open to all who share our common dream of Turkey,” he said.

The elections are seen as a real test for Erdogan. Polls suggest his re-election is anything but certain. The country is struggling with massive inflation and high unemployment. After the severe earthquakes a month ago, there was also criticism of the government’s crisis management. Actually, the elections would not be until June. However, Erdogan wants to bring it forward to May 14. He wants to issue a decree on Friday.

The opposition alliance had previously argued over the candidate issue: the head of the nationally conservative Iyi party, Meral Aksener, initially canceled cooperation on Friday because she did not want to support Kilicdaroglu. She favored the popular mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, or the mayor of Ankara, Mansur Yavas. Now there was a compromise: if successful, the two mayors would also have to become vice presidents – at a time the new president deems appropriate.

A choice “between death and malaria”

Aksener’s departure from the alliance had by now generated much excitement. She had said the choice between Erdogan and Kilicdaroglu was “between death and malaria”. It is still uncertain whether the dispute will harm the alliance. Imamoglu was banned from politics in December. If this becomes legally binding, he will no longer be allowed to hold political office for the time being. Yavas, on the other hand, has a nationalist background that could put off Kurdish voters. The pro-Kurdish HDP is not part of the six-party alliance, but is considered a kingmaker.

Kilicdaroglu could get votes from the Kurdish camp. It is expected that the HDP will not nominate its own candidate. Kilicdaroglu has been at the head of the opposition for almost 13 years – under his leadership his party has yet to win an election against Erdogan. Opponents of his candidacy repeatedly pointed to this fact.

The 74-year-old comes from the eastern Anatolian province of Tunceli (Kurdish: Dersim) and belongs to the Alevi religious minority. The opposition leader is in favor of Turkish EU membership and a nationalist course on refugees. Critics accuse him of lack of charisma. Kilicdaroglu counters that the Turks have had enough of Erdogan and his leadership style.

In a DPA interview in December, the current presidential candidate advocated a policy guided by “reason”. Though considered a poor campaigner, he is a good mediator with diplomatic skills and a willingness to compromise. In addition to the CHP and the Iyi Party, four smaller parties belong to the alliance of six. Among them are Erdogan’s former associates, such as former Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.

Erdogan’s Islamist-conservative AKP is collaborating with the ultra-nationalist MHP and the small, nationalist-religious BBP. Much of the media is under government control, and the judiciary is seen as politicized. A large number of Turkish voters live in Germany. In the 2018 vote, there were 1.4 million. (sda/dpa)