Erdogan's party loses controversial replay of Istanbul election
Istanbul: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan suffered a major blow on Sunday as the opposition candidate in Istanbul's controversial mayoral election re-run romped to victory.
Ekrem Imamoglu won the first vote in March by a tiny margin of just 13,000 votes in the city of 15 million.
But after being stripped of that victory over controversial claims of fraud, he vowed a "battle for democracy" that turned him into a household name.
With more than 99 percent of ballots counted on Sunday night, Imamoglu was winning by more than 775,000 votes -- and had 54 percent overall .
"It was not a single group or party, but the whole of Istanbul and Turkey that won this election," Imamoglu said in his victory speech.
"Mr President, I am ready to work in harmony with you. I convey from here my request to meet with you in the shortest time possible," he added.
Critics accused Erdogan of refusing to give up control of Istanbul, Turkey's economic powerhouse and a crucial source of patronage for Islamic conservatives since he won the mayorship himself a quarter of a century ago.
But Imamoglu, a little-known district mayor at the start of the year, galvanised voters with a relentlessly positive campaign under the slogan "Everything will be fine".
That was in stark contrast to the usual aggressive name-calling of Turkish politics and struck a chord with voters.
He faced the juggernaut of the AKP, which has ruled Turkey since 2002 and remains the most popular political force nationwide.
The AKP's candidate, Binali Yildirim, a mild-mannered Erdogan loyalist who oversaw several huge transport projects and served as prime minister, had already struck a conciliatory tone earlier on Sunday.
"If we have wronged, knowingly or unknowingly, one of our fellow Istanbulites or our challengers, if we have done something unjust, I ask for your forgiveness," he said.
Conceding defeat later in the day, Yildirim congratulated Imamoglu and wished him good luck.
"It's a colossal defeat for Yildirim but also Erdogan. His gamble (in calling for a replay of the election) backfired," Berk Esen, assistant professor of international relations at Ankara's Bilkent University, told AFP.
It comes as an economic slump and rising prices have dented the president's reputation for economic stewardship, with the AKP also losing the capital Ankara in March.
"The AKP elites will probably try to de-emphasise the election and act like it's no big deal," said Esen.
Erdogan has indeed already played down the importance of the re-run, saying last week that the choice of mayor was "only a change in the shop window" since the AKP controls almost two-thirds of the city's districts.
But it was a bitter loss for AKP voters, with some in tears at the party headquarters on Sunday night. "Let them rejoice while they can, they will see..." vowed retired shopkeeper Mehmet.
Despite recent setbacks, Erdogan and his party remain the most popular force in Turkish politics.
For many conservatives, Erdogan remains a hero who has brought prosperity and fiercely defended the country's interests since taking over in 2003.
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Confident we are going to win Kerala: Shashi Tharoor
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Thursday expressed confidence in the victory of the United Democratic Front (UDF) in Kerala, saying the Congress-led alliance will win more than 75 seats out of the total 140 in the state.
Tharoor, who hails from Kerala, said he was not surprised to see the results of the exit polls, most of which predicted a victory for the UDF that has been out of power for 10 years in the state.
"We have been on the ground. I have campaigned in 59 constituencies across 12 districts out of 14. I was very confident we are going to win.
"Everything that I have picked up from not just my party colleagues and workers but also from other observers, media and others have always convinced me that we were going to score a comfortable win of above 75 seats. And all the (exit) polls have confirmed the same thing," he told reporters here.
The Thiruvananthapuram MP said he was not surprised to see the results of the exit polls but in general he was not a big fan of exit polls in India.
"Because ours is not purely a homogenous society. We have to take into account gender issue, caste issue, class issue, regional disparities. You never get a convincingly large enough sample to give an accurate poll and now there is the additional complication that we have heard about in West Bengal this year that many people are unwilling to answer the questions of the pollsters," he said.
The Congress leader said normally, it used to be below 10 per cent that people said that they would not answer.
"Even if you are a reputable exit pollster, in Bengal, one polling company has said 60 per cent of people refused to answer. So, what is the worth of a poll where 60 per cent of your respondents have not answered," he said.
Several exit polls on Wednesday predicted a comeback by the Congress-led UDF in Kerala after 10 years, dethroning the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF).
Polling for the 140-member Kerala assembly was held on April 9. Results of assembly elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Puducherry, besides Kerala, will be announced on May 4.
