Erdogan claims victory in Turkish election

ISTANBUL — Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared victory after unofficial election returns Sunday showed him with enough votes to serve another term that carries new executive powers.

“The nation has entrusted to me the responsibility of the presidency and the executive duty,” Erdogan said in televised remarks from Istanbul after a near-complete count carried by the state-run news agency gave him the majority needed to avoid a run-off.

The presidential election and a parliamentary election also held Sunday, both more than a year early, complete NATO-member Turkey’s transition from a parliamentary system of government to a strong presidential system. Voters approved the change in a referendum last year.

Erdogan, 64, insisted before the election that the expanded powers would bring prosperity and stability to Turkey, especially after a failed military coup attempt in 2016.

The president’s critics, however, warned that Erdogan’s re-election would cement the grip on power of a leader who they accuse of showing increasingly autocratic tendencies.

Results carried by the staterun Anadolu news agency with more than 96 per cent of ballot boxes counted showed Erdogan winning an outright majority of 52.6 per cent, far ahead of the 30.75 per cent for his main contender, the secular Muharrem Ince.