A unified local election was held on March 31st to elect the mayors of Turkey's prefectural capitals. The ruling party led by President Erdoğan lost to the largest opposition party in terms of the national vote share.
This is an expression of public dissatisfaction with the sluggish economy and the response to recovery from a major earthquake. The decision was made to address the country's sluggish economy due to chronic inflation and currency depreciation, as well as the outbreak in February last year, which killed more than 53,000 people.