Turkish president, PM both nominated for Time’s most influential people list

ISTANBUL

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (L) and President Abdullah Gül at the Cankaya Presidential Palace in Ankara. REUTERS Photo

Turkish President Abdullah Gül and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have both been named as candidates for Time magazine’s annual list of the world’s 100 most influential people.

Gül and Erdoğan are mentioned in the “world” category.

“Widely seen as the alternative to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Turkey’s ruling party, Gül has walked a fine line between party loyalty and counterbalancing Erdoğan’s authoritarian streak,” the magazine said regarding the current president.

“Turkey’s authoritarian prime minister overcame antigovernment protests and a corruption scandal to score a huge win in local elections,” it said about Erdoğan.

The list includes other names, such as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Egyptian General Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Pope Francis, Bill Gates, Pussy Riot members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, IMF chief Christine Lagarde, NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, and activist Malala Yousafzai are also on the world category list.

Voting closes at 11:59 p.m. on April 22, and the winner of reader poll will be announced on April 23. The official TIME 100 list will be announced April 24.