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In a highly anticipated announcement, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan revealed the mayoral candidates for the ruling AK Party in a ceremony held at the Haliç Congress Center in Istanbul.
The announcement comes following careful consideration and comprehensive consultations, aiming to present candidates who will fulfill the duties of municipal governance effectively.
President Erdoğan began his speech by expressing gratitude to the attendees and remembering Hüseyin Uysal, Balıkesir Provincial Youth Branch President, who recently passed away. He also paid respects to the more than 50,000 citizens lost in the earthquakes on February 6 and extended condolences to their families.
The President further acknowledged the 23,000 Palestinian brothers and sisters martyred due to Israel's attacks, emphasizing that legal steps would be taken to hold the oppressors accountable. Despite potential discomfort among those sympathizing with Israel, Erdoğan asserted Turkey's commitment to standing tall beside the oppressed, particularly supporting the Palestinian cause.
In outlining the party's approach, President Erdoğan stated: "We present ourselves to the people with mayoral candidates who run after solutions, not excuses, and who will live and breathe with the agenda of their cities, not their individual goals."
He urged citizens not to settle for poorly managed municipalities and emphasized the importance of selecting candidates who will be dedicated to their cities. President Erdoğan called for continued support and a commitment to positive change, saying: "You are not obligated, let your city change with you."
The President also announced a grand ceremony on January 15 to launch the party's election manifesto, highlighting the AK Party's belief in achieving significant victories in the March 31 elections. He closed his speech by expressing optimism about Istanbul's future, stating, "By joining hands, we will bring Istanbul out of the era of discord."
Mayoral Candidates:
- Artvin: Mehmet Kocatepe
- Aydın: Mustafa Savaş
- Balıkesir: Yücel Yılmaz
- Bingöl: Erdal Arıkan
- Bitlis: Nesrullah Tanğlay
- Bursa: Alinur Aktaş
- Çanakkale: Jülide İskenderoğlu
- Çankırı: Hüseyin Filiz
- Denizli: Osman Zolan
- Düzce: Faruk Özlü
- Edirne: Belgin İba
- Elazığ: Şahin Şerifoğulları
- Erzurum: Mehmet Sekmen
- Eskişehir: Nebi Hatipoğlu
- Giresun: Aytekin Şenlikoğlu
- Isparta: Şükrü Bağdeğirmen
- Kastamonu: Tahsin Babaş
- Kocaeli: Tahir Büyükakın
- Muğla: Aydın Ayaydın
- Ordu: Mehmet Hilmi Güler
- Rize: Rahmi Metin
- Samsun: Halit Doğan
- Sinop: Yakup Üçüncüoğlu
- Tokat: Eyüp Eroğlu
- Yalova: Mustafa Tutuk
- İstanbul: Murat Kurum. (ILKHA)
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