• Tweeter

  • republish

The newly elected mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, of the opposition opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), greets his supporters after taking office in Istanbul on April 17, 2019. REUTERS / Huseyin Aldemir

More than two weeks after the March 31st municipal elections in Turkey, the High Electoral Council (YSK) has finally recognized the victory of the opposition candidate, Ekrem Imamoglu. The latter had won with a small gap in front of his rival, former Prime Minister Binali Yildirim. But the power camp says irregularities have tainted the vote and now calls for its cancellation.

With our correspondent in Istanbul, Anne Andlauer

After 17 days of waiting and recount, the Stambouliotes finally know the name of their new mayor. Opposition candidate Ekrem Imamoglu won by 13,729 votes in a megacity of more than 16 million inhabitants. He officially enters office, but the battle is not over.

As wanted by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, his party, the AKP, this week called for the cancellation of the vote and the holding of a new ballot. The 11 judges of the High Electoral Council - an officially independent institution - will have to decide whether " events " could " influence the outcome of the vote, " in the vague terms of the Turkish electoral law.

Since the day after the election, the ruling party denounces errors and cheating. His candidate, former Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, believes the victory was stolen. For its part, the opposition accuses President Erdogan of being ready to do anything to preserve Istanbul.

The High Electoral Council is expected to announce its decision within a few days. If he agrees with the AKP, a new vote will be held on June 2nd.