Turkey May Hold General Election In March 2024 - Reports

ANKARA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd March, 2023) A scenario involving holding the general election in Turkey in March 2024 is possible because the authorities may need to bring the mobility of voters in the earthquake-affected areas in line with electoral discipline, Turkish news agency Cumhuriyet reported on Thursday.

The report said that the Turkish government wanted to hold the elections on May 14 as planned, but the country's Supreme Election Council might announce that it would need more time until the fall to bring the mobility of voters in the earthquake zones "in line with electoral discipline."

The option of conducting the presidential election and municipal elections simultaneously in March 2024 is under serious discussion, the report added.

In January, Turkish President Recep Tayyip said that he was considering pushing the presidential and parliamentary elections forward from the ruling party's proposed June 18 to May 14, before the summer holidays. Following the devastating earthquakes that hit Turkey on February 6, Turkish media reported that the elections could be delayed by six to 12 months to allow the nation to recover.

Erdogan is reportedly moving the election day to an earlier date in order to deprive the coalition of the six opposition parties, which has not even announced its presidential candidate yet, of the opportunity to fully prepare before the election.