Turkey’s ruling AKP nominates veteran figure for parliament speaker post

ANKARA

Justice and Development Party (AKP) Istanbul deputy Ismail Kahraman answering questions after delivering his application on Nov. 20, 2015. AA Photo

The Justice and Development Party (AKP) has nominated Istanbul deputy Ismail Kahraman as a candidate for the post of parliament speaker, Turkey’s second most senior position in state protocol.

Kahraman delivered his application on Nov. 20 along with the AKP’s deputy parliamentary group chairs. The veteran AKP deputy has been a member of the party since its inception and is known to be close to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Kahraman once served as minister from the now-defunct Refah (Welfare) Party, an Islamist predecessor of the AKP. In line with customs, as the second eldest member of the assembly, he sat next to Erdoğan rather than in a regular MP seat during the oath-taking ceremony on Nov. 17.

The deadline for applications to the post is midnight on Nov. 21 and all rounds of voting are planned to be held and completed at the general assembly on Nov. 22.

In the first two rounds of voting, successful candidates are required to have the support of at least 367 MPs in the 550-seat assembly. In a third round of voting, a minimum of 276 votes is needed. If a fourth and final round is necessary, the candidate with the highest number of votes is elected speaker. 

Yusuf Halaçoğlu, a deputy in Central Anatolia’s Kayseri and a high-profile Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) member, has already applied to run as a candidate for the post.