International press watches Turkey’s polls

Hurriyet Daily News with wires

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The world press is following the results of Turkey’s local polls on Sunday. The main point emphasized is that the Justice and Development Party, or AKP, won but also received a warning from the people. The mass news agencies AP, Reuters, AFP and a lot of newspaper and television stations all over the world gave importance to the news about the elections.

There were two things discussed in the news: the AKP lost ground on the political side and five people were killed in Southeast Turkey.

AKP has won, but is warned, said AFP, adding that Sunday's polls saw the AKP lose local administrations in several major cities but retain the capital Ankara and Istanbul, Turkey's largest metropolis, after tough battles with the opposition. Turkey's financial troubles remain a major challenge for the AKP, which rode to power as an untested party in 2002 amid a severe recession and led a substantial economic recovery under an IMF-sponsored program.

Reuters announced the news with the headline: Turkish government poll setback weakens markets. Turkey's ruling AKP won but Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan, hurt by a weak economy, fell short of the sweeping victory that would have smoothed the way for EU reforms, Reuters said.

AP ran the headline: Ruling party loses ground in local elections, and said full results show Erdoğan's Islamic-rooted party has lost political ground. Erdoğan said the results represent "a vote of confidence" in his government, the AP reported.

The election result was expected to force the government to agree to a lending pact with the International Monetary Fund after it suspended talks on an accord in January, said analysts including Simon Quijano-Evans at C.A. Cheuvreux.

Corporate earnings

An IMF loan agreement, which could be worth as much as $25 billion, would help Turkish companies cover payments on their foreign debt as corporate earnings tumble, the lira loses its value against the dollar and as international credit markets issue fewer loans.

Turkey's ruling party led rivals by a large margin in local elections Sunday, yet PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan was not satisfied with the results. "The current picture does not satisfy me. It should have been much better," Erdogan told a news conference at AKP headquarters here. Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AKP), which has been in power since 2002, won 39.1% of the vote with 80% of ballots counted. During the election campaign, Erdogan had clearly said that he expected a better result. In his interview late on Friday, he said his party would fail if it gained less than 47% of the vote, namely the percentage it got in the 2007 elections.

WHAT WORLD PRESS SAYS

Los Angeles Times: Turkey ruling party wins

The Islamist-leaning AKP easily wins municipal elections in most of the country, but in Istanbul, many voters side with the secularist opposition. The vote, a week before a planned visit by President Obama, highlighted the ongoing struggle between secular-minded Turks and their more devout compatriots. Turkey is overwhelmingly Muslim, but since its founding has observed a strict separation of mosque and state.

Financial Times: AKP wins Turkey poll

Turkey’s ruling party won local elections on Sunday but with a loss of support that may limit its ambitions and prompt a new focus on dealing with the economic crisis. With almost all ballots counted, AKP outstripped rivals with 39 per cent of the national vote Ğ proving resilient in comparison with eastern European governments that have succumbed to voters’ discontent with worsening economic conditions.

NY Times: Governing party wins city races

The elections were seen as a referendum on the performance of Turkey’s politicians, in particular that of Mr. Erdogan, a former Islamist who has pressed for Turkey’s membership in the European Union. Early results seemed to send a message: Mr. Erdogan’s party was winning by much narrower margins than in 2007, when it garnered 47 percent of the vote.

Al Jazeera: AKP fails to sweep Turkey poll

Erdogan said the result was "a fresh vote of confidence" in his party, but admitted he was not satisfied with the figures. The drop in the ruling party's popularity comes against a backdrop of record unemployment and a worsening economy in the country. The IMF and Turkey have been in talks for months on a deal and Erdogan is expected to complete those talks after the polls. At least five people were killed in elections.

BBC: Turkish PM's party slips in polls

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party has won local elections by a wide majority - but nevertheless suffered a significant fall in support. "This is a message from the people and we will take the necessary lessons," said a sombre Mr Erdogan. In Sunday's elections, the governing AKP lost ground to both secularist and Kurdish rivals, who had focused on growing economic difficulties and corruption allegations.

CNN: At least 5 killed in election clashes in Turkey

At least five people were killed and dozens more wounded in clashes as municipal elections were held across Turkey. Early election results suggested the ruling political party, led by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, won the overall election as predicted. However, Erdogan's AKP appeared to have slipped several percentage points, compared to its landslide victory in 2007 elections.

XINHUA: Turkey's AKP wins local elections

Turkey's ruling AKPled by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan won the local elections on Sunday, but it suffered a slide in popularity since it swept to power in 2002. The vote took place against a backdrop of record unemployment and a worsening economy, as Turkey's once booming economy has been severely hit by the global economic crisis. Although the AKP won, the situation is not as positive as some predicted.

Deutsche Welle: Ruling party headed for victory

Early results from municipal and provincial elections in Turkey show that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Ergogan's Islamic-rooted AKP is headed for victory. Turkish media report that the governing party has taken more than 40 per cent of the vote. That's with 10 percent of the votes counted. AKP had been expected to to dominate the polls despite rising unemployment and the fallout from the global economic meltdown.