Turkey’s Erdogan to run in early 2028 vote, sidestepping constitutional term limit

A top adviser to Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the Turkish leader would run again in an early election likely to be held in April 2028, media outlets reported on Thursday.

It was the first official confirmation that the 72-year-old leader would run again for president.

"If 360 lawmakers back a decision to call a new election, it will be held on April 16, 2028," Mehmet Ucum said in remarks cited by private NTV broadcaster and Cumhuriyet newspaper.

Under Turkish law, an election would normally be held in May that year.

By bringing the election forward by one month however, the Turkish leader is able to sidestep a constitutional provision limiting a president from serving more than two five-year terms in office.

Under the constitution, parliament can trigger early elections if such a move has the support of 360 of the chamber's 600 lawmakers.

Erdogan's ruling Islamo-conservative AKP and its nationalist ally MHP hold 326 seats in parliament, meaning to trigger the election, they will need the support of at least 34 other lawmakers.

Erdogan, who came to power as prime minister in 2003, served three terms as premier before being elected president in 2014.

Following a referendum three years later, Turkey switched to an executive presidential system, which took effect when Erdogan was re-elected in 2018.

He was re-elected for the third time in 2023.

'I won't run again'

Until now, the government has repeatedly insisted elections will be held on schedule.

During a weekend visit to his Black Sea home province of Rize, Erdogan spoke to supporters of "the upcoming elections" in remarks seen by observers as signalling an early vote.

"Within this unity and solidarity, I renew my belief that we will, God willing, successfully get through the upcoming elections," he said.

But party spokesman Omer Celik dismissed the suggestion, telling reporters: "It was not a signal of an early election. There is no election on our agenda."

After he was re-elected in May 2023 following a devastating earthquake and as concerns grew over Turkey's economic outlook, Erdogan said it would be his final term in office.

And last year, during discussions about updating Turkey's constitution, Erdogan said: "I have no intention of being re-elected or running for president again."

Opposition leader Ozgur Ozel has repeatedly called for an early election since the March 2025 jailing of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, widely regarded as Erdogan's main rival, over what critics have said is a politically motivated graft probe.

Imamoglu was jailed on the same day he was named the 2028 presidential candidate for the main opposition CHP.

But following a court ruling that reshaped the CHP leadership earlier this year, Ozel left to set up the Yeni Parti (New Party) drawing support from enough MPs to take over as Turkey's main opposition force.

It remains unclear who would be the main opposition's challenger to Erdogan, with Imamoglu unlikely to be able to run from behind bars.

Erdogan has been frequently accused by critics of authoritarian tendencies, particularly after the failed July 2016 coup and the sweeping purges that followed.

But he remains popular among his supporters, who see him as the only leader capable of resisting Western pressure and steering Turkey through regional and international crises.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)