Turkey's opposition claims victory in Istanbul & Ankara in a blow to Erdogan - Al Jazeera English

Turkey’s main opposition party has claimed victory in Istanbul and Ankara in local elections, inflicting the biggest defeat on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in more than two decades.

With more than 95 percent of ballot boxes opened in Istanbul on Sunday, Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the Republican People’s Party (CHP) said he had defeated Erdogan’s ruling AK Party candidate by more than 1 million votes.

In the capital Ankara, CHP’s Mayor Mansur Yavas claimed victory over his rival, hailing the result as a “clear message to those who rule this country”.

The CHP was also ahead in Izmir, Turkey’s third city.

In Istanbul, Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu is being tipped as a potential candidate in the 2028 Presidential vote.

In total, CHP prevailed in 36 of Turkey’s 81 provinces, state-run Anadolu reported, making inroads into many AK Party strongholds.
Opposition supporters gathered in Istanbul to celebrate the results, with tens of thousands of people lighting torches and waving Turkish flags.

Al Jazeera’s Sinem Koseoglu reports from Istanbul.