Muharrem Ince withdraws from the Turkish presidential election

Memleket Partisi (Homeland Party) Chairman and presidential candidate Muharrem İnce made a statement at the headquarters of his party after a meeting with his staff. Muharrem İnce, who was a former candidate of the Republican People’s Party (CHP) in the 2018 presidential elections, announced: “I withdraw from the presidential candidacy.” Ince explained his decision to drop out, saying: “I am doing this for my homeland. If they lose (opposition), they cannot blame it on me so they have no excuse. Otherwise, they will blame it all on us.”

Supporters gathered outside the party’s headquarters to listen to Ince’s statement, chanting slogans such as “Ince for president”, and “We are the soldiers of Mustafa Kemal”. After the announcement of Muharrem Ince, some party members cried. There was also a brief brawl after some Homeland Party members insulted members of the press. Ince, who will remain in politics as leader of the Homeland Party, called on voters to vote for his party.

With Ince’s withdrawal, the number of remaining presidential candidates has dropped to three; Recep Tayyip Erdogan of the People’s Alliance, Kemal Kilicdaroglu of the Nation Alliance, and Sinan Ogan of the Ata (Ancestor) Alliance. Although Ince has decided to withdraw as a presidential candidate, the ballots will not be changed and his votes will not be invalidated. Mehmet Rüştü Tiryaki, the HDP’s representative on the Supreme Election Board, also announced that the ballots would remain unchanged, adding: “The election process will continue as scheduled. The votes cast abroad and the votes expected to be cast for Muharrem İnce on Sunday will be considered valid. Of course, Ince must officially notify the YSK of his withdrawal.”