Istanbul to redo mayoral election

The Turkish opposition party on Tuesday criticized the country’s electoral board for ordering a new mayoral election in Istanbul after the candidate from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s party lost. The Supreme Electoral Board on Monday claimed some ballot box committees were illegally formed and called for another vote on June 23.

The Republican People’s Party defeated the Islamist Justice and Development Party for the Istanbul mayoral seat, an important symbol of power in the country, by a slim margin on March 31. The opposition also ended the ruling party’s 25-year hold on Ankara, the capital city. The Justice and Development Party filed objections, claiming some irregularities altered the outcome of the vote.

During a parliamentary speech on Tuesday, Erdogan welcomed the new vote: “We see this decision as an important step in strengthening our democracy, which will enable the removal of the shadow cast over the Istanbul election.”

Opposition newspaper BirGün called the decision a coup, saying justice has “been suspended.” Meral Aksener, leader of a nationalist party that backed the opposition candidate in Istanbul, said the “will of the people has been trampled on.”