Türkiye willing to hold elections in May despite earthquakes, says Erdoğan spokesperson

Erdoğan and his ally Devlet Bahçeli visiting earthquake survivors in Osmaniye on Tuesday. (Photo: AA)

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Türkiye will likely hold parliamentary and presidential elections on May 14 as previously announced by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, according to his spokesperson.

"There seems to be a tendency to hold it on time in May, unless some political consultation leads to another conclusion in the days to come," İbrahim Kalın told CNN International in a live interview yesterday (February 23). 

The elections are formally scheduled for June 18. However, before the powerful earthquakes struck the country, Erdoğan said they had been planning to bring elections forward to May 14. No official move has yet been made regarding the election date.

Kalın further said Erdoğan could not decide the election date on his own. However, according to laws, the parliament, by a three-fifths vote, or the president, by abolishing the parliament, can trigger snap elections.

With the double earthquake that affected 11 cities and displaced nearly two million people, there would be logistical challenges to hold the elections within a few months, Kalın conceded.

"The High Election Committee [Supreme Electoral Council] will decide whether elections can be held in the affected areas in the 10 cities. We have more than two million people that have moved out of the area. How will they be able to vote on the places in which they will be on election day?

"It created a lot of logistical problems on the ground. But we're dealing with the devastation right now. We're providing all this help."

February 6 earthquakes

On February 6, two earthquakes with a magnitude of 7.7 and 7.6 struck the southern city of Maraş. The first quake in the Pazarcık district was followed by the second one centered in Elbistan about nine hours later.

The quakes caused destruction in 11 cities in Türkiye's south and southeast, as well as Syria's northern parts.

The official death toll from the quakes stands at over 42,000 and is expected to increase further, as over 160,000 buildings were completely destroyed or severely damaged.

Over 400,000 earthquake survivors have been transferred to other cities while hundreds of thousands of others stay in tent cities set up in the quake-hit regions. (RT/VK)