Partial results from the municipal elections in Turkey on Sunday evening indicate a favorable trend for the opposition in both Istanbul and the capital, Ankara, according to results published by official media. After counting about 20% of the ballots, the outgoing Mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoğlu, garnered 49.6% of the votes compared to 41.6% for his main rival. In Ankara, Mayor Mansur Yavaş received 56.3% against 36.3% for his opponent, after counting 12.4% of the ballots.
In a development, the Turkish opposition announced its victory in the local elections in Ankara. Polling stations in Turkey closed on Sunday following the municipal elections held across the country, as announced by officials. The head of the Supreme Election Council, Ahmet Yener, told reporters that "the electoral process concluded without any problems except for a few incidents."
At the beginning of the counting process, Ekrem İmamoğlu, the current mayor of Istanbul, led with 49% after 10% of the ballots were opened. Similarly, Mansur Yavaş, the current mayor of Ankara, was ahead with 55% of the votes after opening 7% of the ballots. After 9% of the votes were counted across Turkey, the Justice and Development Party achieved 39%. Turkish voters, numbering 61 million, chose their mayors on Sunday in elections that serve as a test for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's administration, which is determined to reclaim Istanbul after its loss in 2019.
