Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AKP) suffered a major setback in Sunday's (Mar. 31) local elections, losing to the Republican People's Party (CHP), the main opposition party.
According to Reuters, the nationwide local vote reasserted the opposition as a political force and reinforced Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu as Erdogan's chief rival.
With most of the votes counted, Imamoglu led by ten percentage points in the mayoral race in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city, with 50.92% of the vote against the AKP's 40.05%. At the same time, the CHP also retained the capital, Ankara, and gained 15 other mayoral seats in cities nationwide.
"Those who do not understand the nation's message will eventually lose," Imamoglu told thousands of jubilant supporters late Sunday, with some of them chanting for Erdogan's resignation. "Tonight, 16 million Istanbul citizens sent a message to both our rivals and the president."
However, partial official results reported by the state-run Anadolu Agency showed AKP and its main ally giving up mayoralties in 19 key municipalities, including big cities Bursa and Balikesir in the industrialized northwest, possibly reflecting strains on wage earners.
Sunday's local vote also marked the worst defeat for the AKP in its over two decades in power. This could mark a change in Turkey's divided political landscape, with Erdogan calling it a "turning point" in a post-midnight address.
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Analysts also said that Erdogan and the AKP fared worse than opinion polls predicted due to soaring inflation, dissatisfied Islamist voters, and, at least in Istanbul, Imamoglu's appeal beyond the CHP's secular base.
"Turnout was relatively low compared to past elections," Sinan Ulgen, director of the Istanbul-based think tank Edam, said. "There were cross-party shifts in the vote, which did not happen in the national elections because of stronger ideological attachments. This time around the economy prevailed over identity."
Meanwhile, Erdogan, who in the 1990s was also mayor of his hometown, Istanbul, had campaigned hard ahead of the municipal elections, which analysts described as a gauge of both his support and the opposition's durability.
Addressing crowds at the AKP's headquarters in Ankara, the president said that his alliance had "lost altitude" across the country and would take steps to address the message from voters.
"If we made a mistake, we will fix it," he said. "If we have anything missing, we will complete it."
However, the Associated Press reported that elsewhere in Ankara, CHP's Mansur Yavas retained his mayoral seat against an AKP challenger.
"The voters decided to establish a new political order in Turkey," CHP leader Ozgur Ozel told a crowd of jubilant supporters. "Today, the voters decided to change the 22-year-old picture in Turkey and open the door to a new political climate in our country."
Ulgen added that the local election results have thrust Imamoglu into the role of a possible opposition leader who could challenge Erdogan for the presidency in 2028.
"This outcome has certainly been a watershed for Imamoglu," he explained. "He will emerge as the natural candidate of the opposition for the next round of presidential elections."
