Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been declared the winner of a run-off election over the opposition party candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu. The final vote tally puts Erdogan at 52.14% over Kilicdaroglu at 47.86%, which mirrors the point difference between the two rivals during the general election when Erdogan failed to meet the 50 plus percent threshold.
Erdogan said of the win, “We are not the only winners, the winner is Turkey. The winner is all parts of our society, our democracy is the winner.”
His opponent said of the election that it was the “most unfair election period in our history.” One of the most obvious impediments to challenging Erdogan came from the passage of a new law criminalizing the spreading of “false information.” Using this law, Erdogan’s administration convinced Twitter to censor and/or remove opposition accounts and tweets, including Kilcdaroglu’s account.
The win by Erdogan assures Sweden will continue to face stiff opposition from Turkey in its efforts to become a member of NATO.
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