Four candidates officially running in Turkey’s 2023 presidential elections

Homeland Party leader Muharrem İnce and far-right ATA Alliance’s candidate Sinan Oğan have joined the list of politicians running in the presidential race as they were able to collect more than 100,000 signatures, a requirement to be a candidate for parties that have no group in the parliament.

This collage photo shows İnce (L), Erdoğan (2L), Kılıçdaroğlu (2R) and Oğan.

Duvar English

Four politicians are officially running in Turkey's 2023 presidential elections: ruling People’s Alliance candidate President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, opposition bloc Nation Alliance’s candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, Homeland Party leader Muharrem İnce and far-right ATA Alliance’s candidate Sinan Oğan. 

The list was finalized on March 27 after İnce and Oğan gathered more than 100,000 signatures, a requirement to be a presidential candidate for parties that have no group in the parliament.

Four candidates are running in the presidential elections that will be held on May 14.

İnce received 114,657 signatures from the voters while Sinan Oğan received 111,502. Eight other candidates failed to garner enough signatures and New Welfare Party leader Fatih Erbakan withdrew his application to support Erdoğan’s candidacy.

Kılıçdaroğlu is backed by six opposition parties that make up the Nation Alliance. True Party, Social Freedom Party (TÖP), Liberal Democrat Party (LDP), and People’s Liberation Party (HKP) which are minor parties without parliamentary existence announced their support for Kılıçdaroğlu as well.

Erdoğan, on the other hand, is supported by the four parties of the ruling People’s Alliance as well as the radical Islamist Free Cause Party (HÜDAPAR) and centre-right Motherland Party (ANAVATAN). 

İnce has the support of only his party and is criticized by the opposition on the grounds that he jeopardized the opposition’s vote share. On the other hand, the far-right ATA Alliance consisting of ultra-nationalist Victory Party, Justice Party, Turkey Alliance Party, and My Country Party are backing Oğan.

Labor and Freedom Alliance consisting of several leftist parties including the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) and Workers’ Party of Turkey (TİP) previously announced that they will not nominate a candidate for the presidential elections.

HDP co-chair Pervin Buldan stated that they will back the “most democratic candidate” in the elections in a move to support Kılıçdaroğlu, without explicitly mentioning his name. 

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Topics Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Muharrem İnce Sinan Oğan Turkey 2023 presidential election