Turkish President Erdogan announces 48 more mayoral candidates for upcoming local elections

By Anadolu staff

The Turkish president and leader of the Justice and Development (AK) Party on Thursday announced 48 more mayoral candidates for the country's local elections in March.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan named Turgut Altinok and Hamza Dag as the ruling AK Party's mayoral candidates in Ankara and Izmir, respectively.

Other mayoral candidates for 17 metropolitan and 31 provincial municipalities were also announced at a meeting of the AK Party in the capital Ankara.

Erdogan already named Murat Kurum, who is currently a member of the Turkish parliament and previously served as the environment and urbanization minister, for the Istanbul race.

The Supreme Election Council (YSK) announced the 36 political parties eligible to run in the March 31 local elections.

It said the voter rolls will be finalized on Jan. 17, while the ballot positions for each party will be determined by a random drawing on Jan. 27.

Political parties must submit their candidacy lists by Jan. 31. Local election boards will begin printing ballots on Feb. 16.

The final candidate lists will be released on March 3. Election campaigning will end from March 21 until the poll day.

On March 31, voters will choose mayors, district mayors, and local officials (mukhtars) in villages and neighborhoods across Türkiye.