Trabzon: Erdogan names ruling party's mayor nominee

By Ferdi Turkten and Zafer Fatih Beyaz

TRABZON, Turkey (AA) - Turkish president on Friday announced the name of mayoral candidate for Black Sea province of Trabzon, as the countdown for the country’s local elections began.

Speaking at the Justice and Development (AK) Party presentation of mayoral candidates for Trabzon, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is also chairman of the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party, named Murat Zorluoglu as a mayoral candidate for the province.

Erdogan also announced the party’s nominations for the district mayors in the province.

During his speech, Erdogan stressed that they have been fighting to make Turkey meet its dreams and goals.

- Upcoming elections

AK Party and opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) are expected to support each other’s candidates in some districts and provinces, while the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the Good (IYI) Party are expected to make same arrangement.

AK Party has nominated Mehmet Ozhaseki, its deputy chairman and a former environment and urbanization minister, for mayor of capital Ankara in the upcoming election.

Meanwhile, Binali Yildirim, current parliament speaker and former prime minister, will run for mayor of Istanbul for AK Party.

CHP also has nominated Ekrem Imamoglu for mayor of Istanbul and Mansur Yavas for Ankara mayor.

Turkish local polls are held every five years to elect mayors of 30 metropolitan municipalities and 51 provincial municipalities.

Along with metropolitan, provincial and district mayors, voters will also elect municipal council members in cities and -- in rural areas -- mukhtars and members of elder councils.

The last local elections were held on March 30, 2014, which saw AK Party clinch more than 45.5 percent of the vote.