ANKARA
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said that he hopes to call Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan ‘president’ on the evening of August 10.
On Tuesday Erdogan was revealed as the candidate of the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party for Turkey’s upcoming presidential election.
"The people will make themselves heard across the world as it has been doing for the last 12 years," said Davutoglu during an iftar dinner [Ramadan fast-breaking meal] in Ankara on Tuesday, expressing his hope that Erdogan will win the presidential election.
Underlining that it will be the first time the president is elected by direct popular vote, the foreign minister said the “beauty” of the election process is its “naturalness”.
The main opposition Republican People’s Party has supported a joint candidate in the shape of former secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu.
The pro-Kurdish People's Democracy Party candidate is Selahattin Demirtas. Demirtas was elected to the Turkish parliament in 2007 but was sentenced to 10 months in prison in 2010 for alleged links to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. However, his sentence was delayed as he had parlimentary immunity.
Following a referendum in 2007, Turkish citizens will for the first time directly elect their president, who was previously elected by parliament.
According to the Turkish electoral system, a candidate needs more than 50 percent of the popular vote to be elected in the first round, which will take place on August 10.
If none of the three candidates receives the required percentage, a second round on August 24 will take place between the two contenders who received the most votes.
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