Turkey: Erdogan wins 5 more years

The hotly contested presidential election in Turkey saw an unprecedented runoff, where incumbent Recep Tayyip Erdogan retained power. This extends his two decade long presidency by another term ending in 2028.

Beating secular opposition party leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, Erdogan and his conservative religious AK party emerged victorious by a marginal four percent. Battling rampant inflation, soaring over 43 percent, the aftermath of a catastrophic earthquake, which rocked the nation in February and welcoming an influx of refugees, Turkey's electorate remains polarised.

Nonetheless, street vendor Gursel Ozkok's pleased with the election outcome.

Gursel Ozkok: "It went as I expected. I think the person who's beneficial to our country won. I'm very happy. I'm happy because of his beliefs. The rest isn't important. The country comes first."

Nevertheless, younger voters, disheartened by the results, expressed despair over their future prospects for life and work in the country.

Kerem: "I don't have hope anymore. I don't have hope for Turkey. I want to move abroad as soon as possible. I'm an engineering student and it will be better for me elsewhere."

During his presidency, Erdogan's restructured Turkey's political system. The presidential office has been given more centralised powers to declare states of emergency and to bypass parliament in the appointment and dismissal of civil servants. There are cries from the opposition for the reinstatement of the office of the prime minister and mounting fears that Erdogan will grant further centralised powers to the presidency during his new term.

Although Kilicdaroglu's convinced that the elections were unfair, Erdogan has called for national unity. He's urged the public to "put aside all the debates and conflicts regarding the election period and unite around our national goals and dreams."

Amongst the intense political atmosphere, some voters have maintained a sober outlook on the country, like student Aziz Fatih Gemci.

Aziz Fatih Gemci: "This is the will of the people. I hope the economy will be better. I hope our purchasing power will increase. This is our main priority."

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