Kılıçdaroğlu says he got people’s message from 1st round of polls

ANKARA

Opposition Nation Alliance’s presidential candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has described the May 28 runoff voting as a brand new election, calling on the people to get mobilized for bringing a change to the country, and stated he received the messages conveyed by the people to him in the first round of the polls.

“I must also admit. The people conveyed strong and effective messages to us,” Kılıçdaroğlu said in a statement on May 18. He made the statement with just 10 days left to go to the second round of presidential polls.

“To go to vote on May 28 is an ethical, conscious and patriotic obligation. We will cast our votes, and 1 million people will provide election safety,” he said.

Türkiye will go to a second round of elections on May 28 to elect its 13th president. Kılıçdaroğlu, who received 45 percent of votes, will try to unseat incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who garnered 49 percent of votes.

The first round of presidential polls showed that more than half of the Turkish people are not satisfied with Erdoğan’s policies and that his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lost seven points in comparison with 2018, Kılıçdaroğlu said.

“We are going to a very important election for our republic, our state and our people. On May 28, two candidates and two very different understanding will compete. It will be a brand new election. We are starting over,” he stated.

The joint candidate of the six-party Nation Alliance has also given signs that his campaign for the runoff will be tougher.

Meeting with Sinan Oğan

In the meantime, the Demirören News Agency reported that the Nation Alliance contacted Sinan Oğan, the presidential candidate of the nationalist Ata Alliance who received 5 percent of votes, to ask for his support for the second round.

Future Party Chairman Ahmet Davutoğlu met Oğan late on May 17, the agency said. Davutoğlu’s meeting came after the six leaders of the Nation Alliance discussed the election strategy. Oğan heavily campaigned for sending the refugees back to their countries and relentless fight against terror groups.