Erdogan, who has dominated Turkish politics since coming to power 16 years ago and ruled his country with an ever tighter grip, campaigned relentlessly for two months ahead of Sunday’s vote, which he described as a “matter of survival” for Turkey. “The people have voted in favor of democracy, they have chosen democracy,” opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu said, declaring that candidates for his secularist Republican People’s Party (CHP) won in Ankara, Istanbul and the Aegean city of Izmir. Defeat for Erdogan’s Islamist-rooted party in Ankara was a significant blow for the president.
