Binali Yıldırım’s gamble

Source:JamesinTurkey Date:11Jun2019

Actually, this article covers everything you need to know about Istanbul elections

On Monday afternoon representatives from Turkey’s two main political parties announced a rare consensus: their candidates in this month’s repeat Istanbul mayoral election will appear together this Sunday to pitch themselves to voters in a live, televised debate.

A brief, six-point statement released this afternoon said the debate between the opposition CHP’s Ekrem İmamoğlu and Binali Yıldırım, the former prime minister and governing AK Party candidate, will take place at 9pm on Sunday 16 June 2019.

It means that the for the first time since Recep Tayyip Erdoğan faced Deniz Baykal in a head-to-head showdown days before the 2002 general election, Turkish viewers can gauge the election candidates on the same screen.