Ruling party 'leads Turkish poll'

Source: BBC News

Last Updated: Sunday, 22 July 2007, 17:10 GMT 18:10 UK

Ruling party 'leads Turkish poll'

Turkey's ruling AK Party holds a clear lead as general
election votes are counted, early projections suggest.

Initial reports said the AKP, which is rooted in political
Islam, would have almost 51% of the nationwide vote,
with about a quarter of votes counted.

The main opposition party is holding second place, with
about 16% of votes.

The early election was called after parliament failed to
choose a candidate for president, and was widely seen
as a test of Turkey's secular tradition.

-snip-

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6910444.stm

http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=186513&s=&i=&t=Ruling_party_takes_lead_in_Turkish_election:_report

ANKARA (AFP) Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan casts his vote in legislative elections in Istanbul. Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is leading with 50.3 percent of the vote in Sunday's general elections, with 30 percent of the vote counted, the CNN Turk news channel reported.

Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is leading with 50.1 percent of the vote in Sunday's general elections, with almost 35 percent of the vote counted, the CNN Turk news channel reported.

The main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) is second with 16.6 percent and the Nationalist Action Party (MHP) third with 14.4 percent, it said.

The AKP's lead could decrease as counting progresses, since most of the initial results came from the rural east where the party is stronger compared to the more urban west, analysts said.

A survey of results from 600 sample ballot boxes across the country, conducted for the NTV news channel, estimated that the AKP will muster 45.6 percent of the vote and win 332 seats in the 550-member parliament, enough to once again form the government on its own.

The CHP finishes second with 20 percent of the vote and 104 seats, and the MHP third with 14.4 percent and 85 seats, according to the survey.

No other party passes the 10-percent national threshold to enter parliament, but 29 independent candidates, mostly Kurds, will also win seats, it said.

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2701486,00.html

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan appeared to have easily won re-election with his Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP) winning almost 48 percent of the vote.

Campaigning on its strong economic record since first winning power in 2002, the Islamist-rooted AKP appears to have managed to shrug off attacks that it wishes to push the country towards Shariah (Islamic) law.

With just over 70 percent of the vote counted, the AKP vote nationwide stood at 47.6 per cent, ahead of the staunchly secular Republican People's Party (CHP) on 19.9 per cent and the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) coming in third on 14.7 per cent of the vote.

No other party looked close to passing the 10 per cent of the vote needed to be represented in parliament although a number of pro-Kurdish independents looked set to be elected.

A comfortable lead

According to the NTV private television station such a result would see the AKP winning 345 seats in the 550-seat parliament. The CHP would form the main opposition party with 109 seats and the MHP would hold 73 seats.

Although such a result would be a major victory with the AKP increasing its vote compared to the 2002 election by some 14 percent, the fact that three parties have passed the threshold will result in the AKP winning 18 less seats than it did in 2002.

Erdogan will now be forced to recruit allies in order to find the 367 votes needed to elect a new president or perhaps will be forced to find a compromise candidate acceptable to all sides. If the new parliament fails to elect a president to replace the staunch secularist Ahmet Necdet Sezer new elections must be called.

...

I read on Al Jazeera (yesterday, if I remember well) that Erdogan declared he would quit politics if his party got less than 50%+1.
I thought he was quite confident he would make it.

AFP report, http://www.afp.com/english/news/stories/070722213656.evza9qpu.html

AKP "won 46.7 percent of the vote, according to unofficial results after 99.7 percent of the vote was counted."

"The secularist main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) finished second with 20.9 percent of vote and an estimated 112 seats, according to unofficial results."

Well then, Turkey's people have spoken.