Mayoral candidates and other political leaders went to the polling stations for the ongoing Turkish local elections. Current Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, his main rival Murat Kurum cast their votes in Istanbul, giving messages of hope to Turkish public. Meanwhile, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan cast in Istanbul, Republican People’s Party leader Özgür Özel cast in Manisa and both Nationalist Movement Party leader Devlet Bahçeli and İyi Party leader Akşener cast in Ankara.
The polls will be open until 17:00 local time.
“I hope that our vote will be beneficial for Istanbul, our people, and our nation. We are making a very important decision for the future of Istanbul today,” Murat Kurum said.
“I hope all metropolitan cities, all districts, and all towns experience the happiness of living together peacefully and that this election leads to abundance in our nation. Good luck to everybody,” said Ekrem İmamoğlu.