ANKARA
The Turkish parliament on Wednesday elected Numan Kurtulmus, the joint nominee of the Justice and Development (AK) Party and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), as its new speaker.
Kurtulmus, an AK Party lawmaker from Istanbul, got 321 votes in the third round of voting in parliament with 600 seats. He was elected to a two-year term.
Under the Turkish Constitution, the parliament speaker is elected via secret ballot for up to four rounds – as many as are necessary – on a single day.
In the first two rounds, no candidate got a two-thirds majority (400) in the 600-seat parliament.
In the third round, a minimum of 301 votes was needed to win the vote.
Tekin Bingol, the candidate of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), got 160 votes, while the Green Left Party (YSP) candidate Tulay Hamitogullari Oruc got 51 votes.
IYI Party candidate Mustafa Cihan Pacaci got 43 votes.
Serafettin Can Atalay, an MP of the Türkiye Labor Party (TIP), got four votes.
The other two candidates, Mustafa Yeneroglu of the Democracy and Progress (DEVA) Party and Serap Yazici Ozbudun from the Gelecek (Future) Party withdrew from the elections in the third round.
A total of 584 lawmakers cast their votes, while five votes were declared invalid.
Speaking after the election, Kurtulmus promised to be in dialogue with all political parties.
“We will work hard for a stronger, bigger Türkiye,” he said, adding that all 85 million Turkish citizens will build the “Century of Türkiye” together.
“We are starting a very important term. … It is not befitting for countries like us to stay still. As a nation, we have to set new goals before us.
“As the Turkish Grand National Assembly, we will shoulder together the struggle to be strong and influential in the world, which we call the Century of Türkiye. I hope that by making a national constitution, the 28th term will make a great contribution to the Century of Türkiye,” Kurtulmus added.
In a phone call, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan congratulated Kurtulmus for his new post, Türkiye’s Communications Directorate said in a statement.
