Erdogan claims victory in Turkey polls as counting continues

Source: France 24

June 24, 2018 at 19:24

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan claimed victory in Sunday’s presidential election in a televised address before official results were declared by the country’s electoral commission.

Turkey’s President Erdogan has declared victory in Sunday’s presidential race in a televised address while counting was still underway.
The main secular opposition CHP has however said it’s too early to concede defeat.
With more than 95 percent of the vote counted, according to state media reports, the ultranationalist MHP -- which formed an alliance with Erdogan’s AK Party -- gained a surprisingly high 11 percent of the vote.
The pro-Kurdish HDP crossed the 10 percent threshold needed by a political party or alliance to enter parliament.
Voter turnout in Sunday’s high-stakes presidential and parliamentary elections was 86.82 percent.
The elections will put in place a raft of constitutional amendments that were approved with a razor-thin margin in last year’s referendum.