Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party is not discussing a postponement of the general election due to the earthquake, with the two date options on the table remaining unchanged, Turkish newspaper Hurriyet reported on Friday.
President Recap Tayyip Endogen wants the vote to be held on May 14, while several fellow party members want June 18, but there are no decisions or intention within the party to move the presidential and parliamentary elections to a later date, the newspaper reported.
The report added that the Turkish Supreme Election Council would work on a voting process for the residents who moved from the earthquake zones and for those who stayed in the affected parts of the country.
Last week, the leader of Turkey’s opposition Good Party, Meral Aksener, said that the elections in Turkey might be postponed from May 14 to June 18 because of the devastating earthquakes in the country’s southeast. The opposition urged the ruling party not to use the disaster as an excuse to postpone the vote.
Turkish broadcaster Haberturk reported on Thursday, citing sources, that the general election in the country could be postponed for a period from six months to a year, with the election council expected to authorize the postponement at the request of the ruling party.
On February 6, parts of Turkey and Syria were hit by a series of powerful earthquakes and aftershocks. The death toll from the disaster in Turkey has exceeded 36,000. The Syrian Health Ministry said late Tuesday that the final death toll from the earthquake in the government-controlled part of the country had reached 1,414 people, but the United Nations estimated the total number of deaths in Syria at 8,500.
