Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan may seek a third term if parliament decides on early elections, Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said.
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Erdogan previously announced the upcoming municipal elections on March 31 as the last in his political career. The President called for voting in such a way that representatives of the ruling party, and not the current opposition mayors, win the mayoral elections in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir, and thereby begin a “new era” on April 1. Turkey’s ruling party previously reported that Erdogan’s statement does not mean leaving politics.
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“According to Article 101 of our constitution, the President is elected for five years and is elected for two terms. However, in the third paragraph of Article 116, if the Grand National Assembly (Parliament) of Turkey decides on elections during the second term of the (incumbent) President, then this corresponds to 360 deputies with a three-fifths majority. If the decision to hold new elections is made by a three-fifths majority, then the path to a third term is opened,” TELE1 TV channel quoted the minister as saying.
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In 2017, Türkiye became a presidential republic following a referendum. According to the current constitution, the head of state will be able to hold office for no more than two consecutive terms. In May 2023, Erdogan was re-elected to a second term of five years. Opposition parties insisted in the election campaign that in fact we are talking about a third term, since Erdogan was president from 2014 to 2018, but under a parliamentary republic.
