an opponent of Erdogan throws in the towel, three days before the election

He throws in the towel, three days before the election. Muharrem Ince, one of the four candidates for the Turkish presidential election on May 14, announced on Thursday May 11 the withdrawal of his candidacy, a decision which strengthens the chances of Kemal Kiliçdaroglu, the main opponent of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

“I withdraw my candidacy”declared at a press conference the leader of the Memleket (Fatherland) party, which was credited with 2% to 4% of the voting intentions in the latest opinion polls.

“I don’t want them to have any excuses”

He had been the target of a smear campaign on the internet, mounted in particular with the help of deepfakes which showed fake photos of him in the company of women or driving luxury cars. Kemal Kiliçdaroglu accused Russia on Thursday evening of being behind this campaign.

Several executives of Muharrem Ince’s party had resigned in recent days, worried that his candidacy would prevent Kemal Kiliçdaroglu, at the head of an alliance bringing together six opposition parties, from winning against President Erdogan, in power since 2003. The interested party justified his decision by asserting that the opposition alliance “will lay all the blame” on him if she loses. “I don’t want them to have any excuses”he launched.

Muharrem Ince, whose portrait will appear on the ballots on Sunday, was the unsuccessful presidential candidate of the Republican People’s Party (CHP, social democrat) in 2018, beaten in the first round by Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In May 2021, he launched his own secular nationalist formation.