Four days before the Turkish general elections, Muharrem İnce, the Chairman of the Homeland Party (Memleket Partisi), announced that he was withdrawing from the presidential race. İnce cited that the reason behind his withdrawal was due to the rumors that he took money from the palace and his fear that if he did not withdraw, his opponents would use this as an excuse if they lost the election. He stated, “I am withdrawing my candidacy for my country. I do not want my opponents to have any excuses for their defeat.”
İnce also denied the authenticity of some images shared on social media, which were claimed to be his, saying that they were slander and that he did not have any such sound recordings or images. He emphasized that this was not a matter of his private life, but rather an attack on his character.