Turkey is electing its president on Sunday – and things are looking bad for the incumbent!
Recep Tayyip Erdogan (69) has fallen well behind his challenger Kemal Kilicdaroglu in a recent poll. According to data published by the Konda Institute on Thursday, 43.7 percent of those polled supported Erdogan and 49.3 percent supported Kilicdaroglu.
Do we already know the election winner on Sunday? Probably not. Because: If no candidate achieves an absolute majority, a runoff election is planned for May 28th.
BUT: According to this survey, that doesn’t bode well for Erdogan either. She suggests that his rival could then gain extra points as the other two contenders’ supporters lean more towards Kilicdaroglu.
In the poll, 4.8 percent favored Sinan Ogan and 2.2 percent Muharrem Ince. 3480 people were surveyed on May 6th and 7th. Ince announced on Thursday that he was withdrawing from the race for the presidency – which should also benefit Erdogan’s opponents.
After 20 years under President Erdogan, Turkey is at a crossroads. In polls, he and Kilicdaroglu are neck and neck. The approximately 64 million people entitled to vote also decide on the future political system when electing the president and parliament. While Erdogan maintains an authoritarian style of leadership, Kilicdaroglu has announced a democratic new beginning.
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