The Turkish Supreme Election Council (YSK) has rejected appeals filed by the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and Good Party (IP) to annul the results of the 2018 presidential and parliamentary elections, and March 31 mayoral election in Istanbul, local media reported on Monday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th May, 2019) The Turkish Supreme Election Council (YSK) has rejected appeals filed by the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and Good Party (IP) to annul the results of the 2018 presidential and parliamentary elections, and March 31 mayoral election in Istanbul, local media reported on Monday.The two parties filed their requests on Wednesday following the YSK's decision to cancel and repeat the Istanbul election after CHP's candidate, Ekrem Imamoglu, won. The YSK cited the fact that 22 protocols had not been signed and that some members of local election commissions were not public servants as grounds for having the results voided.
According to Daily Sabah newspaper, the YSK's verdict was reached unanimously, with CHP Chairman Kemal Kilicdaroglu labeling the court's decision as predictable.
"We weren't expecting a different result anyway," he stated as quoted by Daily Sabah.
While explaining his party's appeal to the YSK on Wednesday, CHP Deputy Chairman Muharrem Erkek said that, according to the council's logic, the results of the presidential and parliamentary elections of 2018 were also invalid.
"If you say that the local election was stained, then the same is valid for the June 24 [2018] elections. Tens of thousands of people who were not civil servants were on duty at the June 24 elections. If you cancel Mr. Imamoglu's mandate, then you have to cancel Mr. [President] Recep Tayyip Erdogan's mandate too," Erkek said, as quoted by Daily Sabah.
Imamoglu won the Istanbul mayoral election with 48.8 percent of the vote, while his opponent from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), Binali Yildirim, got 48.55 percent. Imamoglu, who used to work as the head of an Istanbul's district council, assumed office on April 17. However, the Supreme Election Council granted an AKP appeal asking for the results of the vote to be canceled over violations of the election procedure.
Meanwhile, the AKP won 44.33 percent of the mayorships nationwide, while the CHP has won 30.12 percent, including those in the cities of Izmir, Antalya, Adana and Mersin.
The second edition of the mayoral election will be held on June 23.
