File Photo
Some 415 observers from eight international organizations have been deployed to watch Turkey’s presidential and parliamentary elections on Sunday.
According to information compiled by Anadolu Agency, the foreign observers -- including parliamentarians from several countries -- have completed their accreditation with Turkey’s Supreme Election Council.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has sent 234 observers, while the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCEPA) sent 72, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) deployed 35, and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM) sent 10 observers.
Voters cast their votes at a polling station during the parliamentary and presidential elections in Ankara, Turkey on June 24, 2018. Polling in Turkey's parliamentary and presidential elections began on Sunday, with 56,322,632 registered voters and 180,065 ballot boxes across the country. Voting started at 8.00 a.m. local time (0500GMT) and will continue through 5.00 p.m. local time (1400GMT).
Voting begins for presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkey
There are also five observers from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC), 15 from the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic-Speaking Countries (TURKPA), 21 from the Turkic-Speaking Countries Cooperation Council (Turkish Council), and 23 from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
They are tasked with monitoring if the elections are carried out in a fair, free, and transparent manner.
More than 55 million Turkish citizens began casting votes across the country on Sunday in Turkey’s presidential and parliamentary elections.There are 56,322,632 registered voters and 180,065 ballot boxes across Turkey. Voting is scheduled to begin at 8.00 a.m. (0500GMT) and end at 5.00 p.m. local time (1500GMT).For the first time in Turkish history, political parties run in the elections by forming electoral alliances.Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) formed an alliance dubbed the “People’s Alliance” while the Republican People's Party (CHP), İYİ (Good) Party and the Felicity Party have constituted another dubbed the “Nation’s Alliance.”Video: Voting begins for presidential and parliamentary elections in TurkeyVoters will cast two separate ballot papers in the same envelope, one for their presidential and one for their parliamentary choice.After voting ends, ballots cast for the presidential candidates will be counted first.Turkish expats cast vote abroadSome 1.49 million expatriates voted in a 13-day period between June 7 and 19 at 123 Turkish missions abroad.Expat votes were transported to Turkey by airmail and will be counted simultaneously as the votes cast in Turkey on Sunday. Balloting at customs gates also began on June 7 and will continue throughout election day.Six candidates are running for president, while eight political parties are contending in the parliamentary elections.In April, Parliament passed a bill calling for early elections on June 24, cementing Turkey’s move from a parliamentary to a presidential system. In an April 2017 referendum, Turkish voters approved the switch.Under the changes, the number of lawmakers in parliament rises from 550 to 600, presidential and parliamentary elections will be held every five years, and presidents can retain ties to their political party. The prime minister post is also abolished.Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has served as president since 2014, and is Turkey's first popularly-elected president. Before that, he served as prime minister from 2003 to 2014.Erdoğan would be Turkey's first leader to rule under the presidential system should he win the election.
Turkey goes to polls in presidential, parliamentary elections
The observers will be able to watch voting and ballot counting so long as they do not interfere with these procedures.
The election monitors will also prepare reports on whether international standards are followed.