Turkish expatriates in Europe, Middle East begin voting in Türkiye’s May 14 elections

UPDATES WITM MORE COUNTRIES WHERE VOTING STARTS

By Murat Temizer, Mehmet Nuri Ucar, Ahmed Yusuf Bitmez, Idris Okudici, Atila Altuntas

WARSAW / STOCKHOLM / BEIRUT / DOHA, Qatar (AA) – Turkish expatriates in Finland, Sweden, Qatar, and Lebanon began voting on Monday for the presidential and parliamentary elections that will be held across Türkiye on May 14.

Polling stations in Finland will be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. local time for seven days until May 7 for 6,791 Turks eligible to vote.

Türkiye’s Ambassador to Finland Deniz Cakar told Anadolu: "Things are going well. The interest of our citizens is satisfactory. Our balloting committees are ready and our observers are watching the electoral process from the beginning."

Meanwhile, polling stations in Alvsjo, a district of Stockholm Municipality in Sweden, will welcome 42,800 Turkish voters until the same date.

Türkiye’s Ambassador to Sweden Yonet Can Tezel told Anadolu that long lines formed on the first day of voting, which began Monday morning at 9 a.m. local and will continue until Sunday.

Separately, polling has begun in the Middle Eastern country of Qatar, where 10,868 Turk expatriates are eligible to vote until May 7 for elections slated for May 14 in Türkiye.

Voting at the Turkish Embassy in Doha, Qatar’s capital, began at 9 a.m. local time and will continue until 9 p.m. local time.

While a total of 8,336 Turk expatriates are registered voters in Lebanon, who are also given the same time limit to cast their ballots.

Talking to Anadolu, Türkiye’s Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Baris Ulusoy said: "We have made all our preparations so that our citizens can vote safely."

Voting across Türkiye will take place on Sunday, May 14. Voters will choose between four presidential candidates, including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is seeking reelection, Muharrem Ince, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, and Sinan Ogan.

While 24 political parties and 151 independent candidates are vying for seats in the 600-member Turkish parliament.

Approximately 3.41 million Turkish citizens are eligible to vote abroad, where voting has already begun in some countries, with nearly 278,000 of them voting for the first time.

*Writing by Burak Dag, Faruk Zorlu and Nur Asena Erturk in Ankara