Oh dear, it looks like a popular candidate – who is a thorn in the side of Turkey’s ruling party – won the mayoral election in Istanbul Sunday…for the second time.
Supporters of Republican People's Party candidate for Istanbul mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, celebrate in the city after the elections re-do on Sunday.
ISTANBUL—An opposition candidate has won a repeat ballot for Istanbul mayor Sunday, ending President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s quarter-century grip on the megalopolis and exposing troubles at his long-dominant ruling party.
Mr. Imamoglu had defeated the AKP candidate in the initial March municipal ballot, but electoral authorities had voided the results after Mr. Erdogan complained of fraud and called for a do-over. - WSJ
As this appears to be a threat to Turkey’s ruling party, the media played down the victory:
“Istanbul has voted,” read the subdued headline of the usually rabidly pro-Erdoğan tabloid Yeni Şafak. There were no pictures of the fireworks and scenes of jubilation hours before. - The Guardian
Although it’s clear that the win could mean significant consequences for President Erdoğan and his party.
Imamoğlu ended 25 years of Islamist party dominance in the rerun for control of Turkey’s biggest city and economic centre, which accounted for 31% of GDP in 2017.
The result has serious financial implications for the ruling Justice and Development party (AKP) and its patronage networks, and will amplify the sense among the opposition and within Erdoğan’s party that the president’s power is starting to wane. - The Guardian
Yikes! That sounds like it could present a serious threat to the status quo.
Since the stakes were so high -
Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan - who served as Istanbul's mayor in the 1990s and leads the AK Party - has famously said: "Whoever loses Istanbul loses Turkey". - Al Jazeera
Turkey went to extreme measures to ensure there was no voter fraud this time around:
One lawyer was appointed to each voting booth set up in nearly 2,000 polling stations across the city.
Esen told Al Jazeera it was an important development for Turkish politics, as the vote counting process has not been very accurate and fair in previous elections. – Al Jazeera
We intend to correct that in the future
While the opposition nurses a collective hangover, attention is turning to what the president’s next move will be. - The Guardian
I have a few suggestions: First, he should declare this is an illegitimate win, by an illegitimate candidate. Then produce any of the dirt your surrogates have been able to find or manufacture against Imamoğlu and launch an official “investigation” into the Mayor’s campaign. If nothing else shows up claim Russian Collusion and election interference because how else could such a reprobate win, eh? And if that doesn’t work, due to lack of evidence, there’s always allegations of obstruction.
I’ve even got the legal Dream Team for you:
And Good Luck!
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