The opposition’s İstanbul mayoral candidate, Ekrem İmamoğlu, was on Wednesday officially declared the new mayor of Turkey’s largest city, after 17 days of objections and vote recounts.
According to the latest results, İmamoğlu is ahead of the ruling party’s Binali Yıldırım by 13,729 votes, a razor-thin margin for a city of nearly 10 million registered voters.
Nominated by an alliance between the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the İYİ (Good) Party, İmamoğlu has become even more popular since the local election on March 31 with his firm stance against ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) objections to the election results.
CHP and İYİ Party members worked hard at election board centers during the reassessment of votes, immediately announcing the latest recounts to the public.
İstanbul has been governed by conservative Islamist parties since Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s win in 1994.
On Tuesday the AKP submitted a petition requesting a new election in İstanbul, claiming that there were discrepancies at polling stations.
President Erdoğan also alleged fraud in İstanbul’s election.