92.3 percent of partial recounts have been completed in Istanbul
Turkish opposition warns against damaging ballot security
Head of Republican People's Party says electoral board has entered process that damages security of ballot boxes as Erdogan says margin too small for opposition to claim Istanbul win.
Monday 08/04/2019
92.3 percent of partial recounts have been completed in Istanbul
ISTANBUL - The head of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) said on Monday that the High Electoral Board, which has agreed to a partial recount of local votes in Istanbul, has entered a process that damages the security of ballot boxes.
President Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party requested on Sunday a recount of all votes in Istanbul after its mayoral candidate lost by a slim margin on March 31. A recount of invalid votes in some districts of Istanbul and full recounts in others over the past week have narrowed but not closed the gap between the two candidates.
The CHP's Kemal Kilicdaroglu said the board's judges need to be impartial and that a full recount needed a reasonable justification.
He added that with 92.3 percent of partial recounts completed in Istanbul, his party's candidate, Ekrem Imamoglu, was leading by a margin of 15,722 votes. The city has some 15 million people.
Erdogan said on Monday the margin of votes between Istanbul's top two candidates was too small for the opposition to have claimed victory, as his ruling party seeks a full recount to deal with what he called "organised crime."
Last week's initial results showed a narrow mayoral victory for Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) in the March 31 municipal elections.
Erdogan's AK Party (AKP) had appealed the initial results in all 39 districts of Istanbul, leading to partial or full recounts across Turkey's largest city, which has some 10 million voters. On Sunday AKP said it sought a full recount.
"The citizens are telling us to protect their rights, they are complaining of organised crimes. And we, as political parties, have determined such organised crimes," Erdogan told a press conference in Istanbul.
Erdogan said he would only accept the result when the High Electoral Board (YSK) has processed all the appeals.
"Nobody has the right to get in an election victory mood in a city of 10 million voters with a margin of 13,000-14,000," he said. "When the appeals have been completed, we will accept the result."