Turkish people go to the polls to choose a new President

The vote will decide not only who leads Turkey, a NATO member state of 85 million people, but also how the country is governed, its economy , cost-of-living crisis and the shape of its future foreign policy.

This will be a confrontation between incumbent President Tayyip Erdogan and his main rival, Kemal Kilicdaroglu - the head of a coalition of six opposition parties.

Opinion polls show Mr Kilicdaroglu with a slight lead. However, if neither candidate wins more than 50% of the vote, there will be a runoff election on 28 May.

The election comes three months after an earthquake in southeastern Turkey killed more than 50,000 people. Many in the affected provinces have expressed anger at the government ’s slow response, but there is no evidence that the incident may have influenced voters’ decisions.

Voters will also elect a new parliament , a tight race between the People's Alliance comprising Mr Erdogan's AK Party (AKP), the nationalist MHP and Mr Kilicdaroglu's National Coalition.

Polling stations will open at 8 a.m. and close at 5 p.m. local time. Under Turkish election law, it is forbidden to publicize the progress of the vote count until 9 p.m.

Kurdish voters, who make up 15-20% of the electorate, will play a key role in the vote. The pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) is not part of the opposition coalition, but has also opposed Mr Erdogan’s policies over the years.

If the Turkish people do not continue to elect Mr Erdogan, it will be because they see a decline in prosperity, equality and the ability to meet the basic needs of the people, with inflation reaching 85% by October 2022 and the collapse of the lira.

Mr Kilicdaroglu, a 74-year-old former civil servant, has promised that if elected he will return to orthodox economic policies. He has also promised to seek to return the country to a parliamentary system of government. He has also promised to restore the independence of the judiciary.

Hoang Nam (according to Reuters)