ANALYSIS: Election appeals that could decide Turkey's election

April 6, 2019  01H:36  GMT/ZULU

by Leila Mohamed and Biodun Iginla, BBC News, and Reuters News Analysts, Ankara

ANKARA - Turkey’s AK Party has filed objections to initial results of Sunday’s local elections in all districts of Istanbul and Ankara, after they showed narrow victories for the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).

Following are details of the regulations covering voting, counting, and appeals to the results in Turkish local elections.

VOTING

* In Sunday’s elections, Turks voted to elect mayors, members of the municipal councils, neighbourhood representatives, and other local administrators.

VOTE COUNT

* Ballot box delegations, made up of representatives from the five political parties that won the most votes in the previous elections, assess valid and invalid votes.

* Once valid and invalid votes have been separated, the tallies are taken to the District Electoral Council where records from across the district are collected.

* The final district record sheet is taken to the Provincial Electoral Council, and a copy is given to the parties and independent candidates.

* The Provincial Electoral Councils share data with the High Electoral Board (YSK), which inputs the results into its election programme, accessible only by political parties in the race.

APPEAL PROCESS

* After all votes have been counted, parties can file objections and appeals to the initial results in three stages. The appeals can demand a recount of all votes or of only invalid votes, or an annulment of the elections in the district or city.

* Firstly, parties can submit objections to the votes at the District Electoral Council, where officials have a two-day period to evaluate the appeals. If approved, the votes in that district are re-examined.

* If rejected, parties can submit further objections to the Provincial Electoral Council a day after the rejection of the first appeal. Officials again have a two-day period to evaluate the appeals. Votes are re-examined if approved.

* If neither appeal yields results, parties can file appeals to the YSK, the highest authority on the matter. The YSK has three days to rule on the appeals, which will be final.

* Following Sunday’s vote, the deadline for submitting objections to the District Electoral Council expired on Tuesday at 3 pm (1200 GMT). The AKP filed objections in every district of Ankara and Istanbul.

ADVERTISEMENT

* The deadline to appeal to the Provincial Electoral Council, which can overturn rulings by the district councils, was 5 pm (1400 GMT) on Friday. On Friday, the AKP appealed to the provincial council for all Ankara votes to be recounted, after saying the recount triggered by its appeal to the district council did not meet its expecations.

* The final stage of the appeals is the YSK. It is made up of 11 members, chosen by Turkey’s highest courts. The four political parties that received the most votes in the previous elections may also appoint representatives who can join the meetings but cannot take part in decisions.

BREAKING AND UPDATE: fight breaks out among MPs in Turkey parliament

Jan 12, 2016  00H:36 GMT/UTC/ZULU TIME

by Alara Berrak and Biodun Iginla, BBC News, Ankara

A fight broke out during a debate in the Turkish parliament on Wednesday.

Turkish lawmakers from the ruling AK Party clashed with members of the opposition Republican's People Party when an MP tried to film a voting session.

They were debating constitutional changes that would give President Recep Tayyip Erdogan new powers to hire and dismiss government ministers.

Related Topics

Turkey's AKP faces challenge to form government

by Isabelle Roussel and Biodun Iginla, Reuters and BBC News, Istanbul

8 minutes ago

Turkey's AK party faces a challenge to form a government after losing its majority at a general election for the first time in 13 years.

It secured 41%, a sharp drop from 2011, when it won nearly half of the vote.
Under Turkey's proportional representation system, this means the AKP will need to form a coalition or face entering a minority government.
The pro-Kurdish HDP crossed the 10% threshold, securing seats in parliament for the first time.
There were jubilant scenes as the party's supporters took to the streets chanting "we are the HDP, we are going to the parliament".
"It is a carnival night," 47-year-old Huseyin Durmaz told AFP. "We no longer trust the AKP."
Turkey's lira fell to near-record lows against the dollar early on Monday as markets reacted to the news.

Shares dropped by more than 8% soon after the Istanbul stock exchange opened.
HDP leader Selahattin Demirtas ruled out entering into a coalition with the AKP.
The result is a blow to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's plans to boost his office's powers.
He first came to power as prime minister in 2003 and had been seeking a two-thirds majority to turn Turkey into a presidential republic.
"The discussion of executive presidency and dictatorship have come to an end in Turkey with these elections," Mr Demirtas told a news conference in Istanbul.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said: "The winner of the election is again the AKP, there's no doubt."
But he added: "Our people's decision is final. It's above everything and we will act in line with it."

The BBC's Mark Lowen in Istanbul

The AKP has polled worse than it ever feared and lost its majority. President Erdogan will be unable to change the constitution and extend his powers.
It's a stark contrast with the HDP, which gambled to run as a single party for the first time, hoping to cross the 10% threshold. It paid off, gaining a significant voice for the Kurdish minority on the national stage.
It succeeded by appealing beyond the Kurds, drawing in leftists and staunch Erdogan opponents with its message of equality, gay rights and environmental concerns.
This could be the start of a new political era here; a major setback for a president who has polarised this nation.
In a volatile Middle East, Turkey matters greatly - and so the path it takes, the nature of its democracy and the leaders it produces, all have implications far beyond its borders.
Turkey's least predictable election 

Profile: Recep Tayyip Erdogan 

With nearly all the votes counted, the AKP looks likely to win 258 seats in parliament, 18 fewer than it requires for a majority.
The Republican People's Party (CHP) looks likely to be the second largest party, as in the previous parliament, polling around 25% of the vote.
In third place is the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) on 16.5%, with the People's Democratic Party (HDP) in fourth place with 13%.
The HDP is expected to finish with 75 to 80 seats after attracting votes beyond its Kurdish support base.

Who are the HDP?

• The People's Democratic Party was founded as a pro-Kurdish party in 2012
• There are 15m Kurds in Turkey - or 20% of the population
• The party has since attracted support across the left
• It had the only openly gay candidate in Turkey's elections
• A higher proportion of women ran for the HDP than any other party

Kurds, women, gays put faith in upstart Turkish party

Many turned out to vote in the HDP's heartland of Diyarbakir, two days after a bombing in the eastern city killed two people and injured 200 more.
The MHP's leader Devlet Bahceli did not rule out the possibility of entering a coalition government, but said the results represented the "beginning of the end for the AKP".
Once viewed as invincible, President Erdogan's party has been criticised in recent years for its clampdown on free speech and its growing authoritarianism.