Turkey's Council of State elects female judge as chief

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News

Zerrin Güngör will be heading Turkey’s Council of State in a position often filled by male officials. Of the 165 votes cast, 80 were in Güngör’s favor. AA photo

The Council of State finally elected a new chief for their institution on July 18, after only one candidate ran for the post. A female investigating judge has been elected for the post, in a country where the heads of top courts have usually been males.

Zerrin Güngör, 58, elected as a member of the Council of State in June 2008, has been deputy president since June 2012. Güngör was elected with 80 votes out of the 165 members of the Council of State.

The post had been vacant since former President Hüseyin Karakullukçu retired on June 15 due to the age limit. At a previous round of the election on July 15, Güngör managed to get only 79 votes, which was not an adequate number. Thus, a new round of voting was held
on July 18.