NEWS CENTER – Turkish presidential elections will most probably take place on 14 May as scheduled, said İbrahim Kalın, spokesman of President Erdoğan, in an interview with CNN International on Wednesday. Following the shocking twin earthquakes in Turkey’s Kurdish-majority southeast, a debate has been ongoing over whether the upcoming elections in Turkey will be held on time or postponed.
Three different scenarios have been widely discussed in relation to the upcoming elections. Firstly, the elections could be held at the constitutionally set date; secondly, the government could try to postpone elections to a later date; or thirdly, presidential elections and parliamentary elections could be combined with the 2024 local elections.
“There seems to be a tendency to hold it on time in May unless some political consultation leads to another conclusion in the days to come,” Kalın said in the interview.
Recalling that the opposition parties have also agreed to hold the elections on 14 May, Kalın said that the high election committee will make the final decision on the exact date for the elections.
“But if the political parties come together and agree on postponing it to 18 June, again, it’s a possibility. But right now, it looks like it will be on 14 May,” he said.
Kalın also noted that the high election committee will also decide whether elections can be held in the earthquake affected areas in the 10 cities where two million people have moved out of the area.
With only 90 days left until 14 May, many in Turkey think it is impossible to complete election preparations in the wake of the earthquake disaster that has affected 13.5 million people and has caused a mass wave of migration.
