The postponing of Turkish elections due to earthquakes by six or even 12 months is proposed by Bulent Aris, the former chairman of the Turkish parliament and former deputy prime minister in Erdogan’s government, with a request to amend the constitution, which provides for the postponement of elections only because of the war. The reaction of the Turkish opposition was strong.
A well-known veteran politician of the Justice and Development Party, which has ruled Turkey since 2001, suggested in a tweet that the May 14 elections be postponed to November or combined with local elections in 2024.
The experienced Mr. Arinc, originally from Crete, recalled that the provinces hit by the earthquake, which affected more than 15 million citizens, were represented by 85 deputies in the Turkish Grand National Assembly, which he has chaired since 2002. until 2007.
He explained that the electoral rolls in these provinces were no longer valid, and elections in these districts had become legally and practically impossible. Emphasizing that the country must be saved from the stress of elections in these difficult days, Mr. Ahrendts said that “there will be no elections in May or June, they cannot take place.”
Turkey’s constitution stipulates that elections can only be postponed in case of war, but according to Mr. Aris, Turkey’s deputy prime minister from 2009 to 2015, this is not a problem. In his post, he argues that the Constitution is not a sacred text and can be changed.
violent reactions
As expected, the post of Mr. Arends caused a strong reaction from the Turkish opposition. Official opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu dismissed any possibility of postponing the elections unofficially scheduled by President Tayyip Erdogan for May 14 and called for an official date to be set immediately.
He also recalled Article 78 of the Turkish constitution on postponing elections only in case of war.
IYI party spokesman Kursad Zorlu also said the elections should be held on time. Mr Zorlow said: “Our main goal is to heal our wounds immediately. Both the effective solution of the country’s problems and the timely holding of elections in accordance with our Constitution will be the main approach of the IYI party.”
Source: NTV Haber
Source: Kathimerini
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