YSK announces altered voting hours for local polls in 32 cities

ANKARA

The election watchdog yesterday disclosed that voting hours for the upcoming local elections next March will commence and conclude an hour earlier in 32 out of all the country's 81 provinces.

The alteration in voting hours, from the standard 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., will be effective in provinces east of Gaziantep, Kahramanmaraş, Ordu and Sivas, where citizens will now cast their votes between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. This adjustment acknowledges the disparity in sunrise and sunset times across the regions.

Decisions regarding the elections were previously published in the Official Gazette on Dec. 1, with the election calendar set to commence with the new year's onset. Following this, the Supreme Election Council (YSK) is scheduled to announce the eligible political parties on Jan. 2, paving the way for their participation in the upcoming elections.

On Jan. 27, the order of political parties on the ballot paper will be determined. Moving forward, voter registers are expected to be finalized on Feb. 7, marking the commencement of the determination of polling booths, with this process concluding on Feb. 11.

Political parties have until 5 p.m. on Feb. 20 to submit their candidate lists, a crucial step in the lead-up to the final candidate list announcement on March 3 by provincial and district election boards. Following this, on March 21, prohibitions on election propaganda will officially begin.