Sanliurfa-Saba:
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hinted on Saturday at the possibility of running for Turkish presidency for a new term, and this is the first time the Turkish leader has said so.
Erdogan spoke during the regional branches conference of the ruling Justice and Development Party in the city of Sanliurfa in the southeast of the country.
During his speech, Erdogan held a dialogue with the famous Turkish folk singer Ibrahim Tatlises, where the singer asked Erdogan if he would run for president in the upcoming presidential elections.
Erdogan replied: "If you are ready, I am ready." Tatlises responded, addressing the audience: "We received a promise from him."
Mehmet Okum, the Turkish president's senior advisor and deputy chairman of the Presidential Council for Legal Policy, had previously said that Erdogan could run for president again if the country's parliament decides to hold early elections in the second half of 2027.
In 2017, Turkey became a presidential republic after a referendum. According to the current constitution, the head of state cannot serve more than two consecutive terms.
In May 2023, Erdogan was re-elected for a second five-year term, and opposition parties insisted in the election campaign that it was in fact a third term, as Erdogan had been president from 2014 to 2018, but under a parliamentary republic.
| more of (International) |