President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan capped his reelection campaign with three rallies in Istanbul on Saturday, on the final day ahead of Sunday’s elections as he criticized opposition presidential candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu’s claim that Russia was interfering in Türkiye’s upcoming elections.
Erdoğan held rallies in the Ümraniye, Sancaktepe and Beyoğlu districts of Istanbul.
“Mr. Kemal, takes his orders from terrorists. We take orders from our Allah and our nation. This is the difference between us,” Erdoğan told a rally in Istanbul’s Ümraniye district, referring to pro-PKK Peoples’ Democratic Party’s (HDP) support for Kılıçdaroğlu. The HDP is known for its affiliation with the terrorist group PKK.
“What did Kremlin’s spokesperson say? (Dmitry) Peskov says: ‘He (Kılıçdaroğlu) is lying, he should explain, he should prove it.’ Do you have proof? No! Then, he starts shifting ground. He says: ‘We heard like that. There is no evidence but (it is) possible.’ What kind of politics is that? My nation will not surrender this country to you,” Erdoğan said.
On Thursday, Kılıçdaroğlu, the leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and joint candidate for the six-party opposition Nation Alliance, accused Russia of being behind video content allegedly discrediting candidates for the presidency in the upcoming May 14 elections.
Peskov on Friday rejected accusations, saying there can be no question of any interference of Russia in the Turkish elections, and that “those who spread such rumors are liars.”
“Kemal says that we will impose sanctions on Russia … What kind of mindset is this? What kind of understanding is this?” Erdoğan said.
He added that Russia is one of Türkiye’s important allies in agriculture, defense industry, and tourism. “Where do nearly 5.5 million tourists come to us from? It comes from Russia. What will you do about it?”
On Sunday, Türkiye will go to polls to elect a new president and also members of the 600-seat parliament.
On the presidential ballot, voters will choose between Erdoğan, Kılıçdaroğlu, and Sinan Oğan. Muharrem Ince, another presidential contender, withdrew from the race on Thursday though his votes will still be valid the Supreme Election Council (YSK) affirmed Saturday.
