Turkey: polls for municipal elections opened – Imamoglu and Erdogan in battle positions

On the 7th morning of Sunday (31.3,2024) the polling stations were opened in the east, as today the elections are held throughout the country. In the major cities of Turkey, such as Ankara and Istanbul, and in the western part of the country, the vote on the municipal elections will begin an hour later and will be completed at 17:00 (local time and time of Greece). Everyone’s eyes are on the critical encounter of Constantinople, which – as they all show – will turn into a confrontation between Tayyip Erdogan and Imamoglu. The latest polls showed that the split in favour of Imamoglu was slightly opened against Erdogan Murat Kurum, yet the battle remains bilateral. In one last move to impress the Islamist electorate base, a few hours before the polls opened, Erdoğan, accompanied by Kurum, prayed Saturday night in Agia Sophia. The result of Sunday’s municipal elections can further strengthen President Erdogan’s control of the political system. But if he fails to get the municipality of Istanbul back, he changes the political scene in Turkey and opens the way for incumbent mayor Erem Imamoglu to become the unquestionable leader of the opposition.