Turkish president rejects 'dictatorship' claims

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday rejected claims that he is a "dictator" and said if he was an authoritarian leader he would have won the presidential election in the first round on May 14.

"On May 14, we showed that the dictatorship rhetoric is pure nonsense. Think of it this way. Will a dictator hold a second round? The dictator finishes his job in the first round. And besides, he can finish with 90% (of votes). There are many examples of this in the world.

"We are longing to win the hearts of our nation, not the dictatorship," Erdogan said at a rally in the capital Ankara.

Türkiye showed the whole world that "the nation cannot be swayed by the covers of magazines," he added.

Erdogan repeatedly criticized international media outlets that have recently tried to influence public opinion with articles on the country's elections, saying that Türkiye will not allow its politics to be directed by the covers of magazines.

Millions of voters went to the polls on May 14 to elect the country’s president and members of its 600-seat parliament.

Erdogan’s People’s Alliance won a majority in parliament, while the presidential race is headed to a second round on May 28.

Erdogan will face Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and joint candidate for the six-party opposition Nation Alliance, in the runoff vote.

Erdogan finished the first round with 49.52% of the vote, while Kilicdaroglu came second at 44.88%, and Sinan Ogan of the ATA (Ancestral) Alliance got 5.17%.

Hailing the high turnout on May 14, Erdogan said the Turkish nation showed its will with a record rate that even made European countries jealous.

"On May 14, we not only saw the power of Turkish democracy, but also witnessed the bursting of many perception bubbles," he added.

Despite the smear campaigns carried out by those who could not take even half of the voters to the polls in their own countries, Erdogan said almost 90% of the voters in Türkiye went to the polls.