Turkey election: Polls close as Erdogan seeks second term

President Erdogan has had opponents arrested and jailed

POLLS have opened in Turkey’s joint presidential and parliamentary elections, seen as the biggest test at the ballot box for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of his 15 years in power.

According to Skynews, on Saturday, up to a million people turned out for one of the last opposition campaign rallies ahead of Sunday’s elections.

The rally, held in Istanbul, was in support of Muharrem Ince, the main competitor to President Erdogan.

Mr Erdogan is expected to be re-elected but might be forced into a run-off by the opposition.

A coalition of parties have teamed up to challenge the hold that Mr Erdogan’s AK party has on parliament – and the president risks losing his majority.

“We want change,” one opposition supporter told Sky News. “We can win, yes we can win.”

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The president has arrested and jailed many of his opponents and critics since the attempted coup in 2016.

Selahattin Demirtas is one of the country’s best-known politicians. He is campaigning to be president from jail – he was locked up for alleged links to the banned Kurdish PKK party.

From his prison cell, he told Sky News that he doesn’t think the elections will be free and fair: “A fair election would mean AKP cannot win.

“If Erdogan and AKP finally decide to think about the welfare of the country and decide to respect the will of the voters, then voters will be able to vote in a fair and free atmosphere.

S-Davies Wande