With only six days remaining for parties to specify the names for Turkey’s June 24 elections, Turkey’s main opposition is yet to name a presidential candidate
As critical days await political parties following Monday according to the calendar prepared by Turkey’s Supreme Election Board, Turkey’s main opposition, the Republican People's Party (CHP), has not yet put up a presidential candidate.
Parties which aim to enter an alliance must notify the Supreme Election Board by May 6 at 5 p.m. In addition to this, presidential candidates, with the signatures of 100 voters, must submit their applications to the board by 11 p.m. on May 2. The final list, including the names of the approved candidates, will be announced on May 3 by 8 p.m. For candidates to be nominated by 100,000 voters, the period to collect signatures will be between May 4 and May 9.
Applications for party candidates running for the presidency will start and continue till 5 p.m. local time on May 5.
May 1 is marked as Labor and Solidarity Day in Turkey, so it is expected that the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party, Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and CHP will hold their group meetings and announce their presidential candidates by Thursday at the latest.
AK Party’s campaign for signatures backing Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as a presidential candidate will run until May 2. Following this, an application to the Supreme Election Board for his presidential candidacy will be lodged by both the AK Party and MHP.
Parliament on Apr. 20 passed a bill calling for early elections on June 24, cementing Turkey’s move from a parliamentary to a presidential system. In an April 2017 referendum, Turkish voters approved the switch.
