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Turkish deputy PM says country’s president shouldn’t leave political arena

Politics Materials 2 June 2014 10:47 (UTC +04:00)
Turkey’s president should be persuaded not to leave the political arena and head the country’s Justice and Development Party after the presidential elections, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bashir Atalay said.
Turkish deputy PM says country’s president shouldn’t leave political arena

Baku, Azerbaijan, June 2

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

Turkey's president should be persuaded not to leave the political arena and head the country's Justice and Development Party after the presidential elections, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bashir Atalay said.

The deputy prime minister made the remarks in his interview with the country's Haber7 TV channel on June 2.

He underscored that a person of strong character will be elected Turkish president, but the Justice and Development Party should also be headed by one.

Atalay went on to add that possibly, the candidacy of the country's Prime Minister will be nominated for the presidential elections.

Earlier, Turkish President Abdullah Gul said he has no political plans for the future.

However, the deputy head of the ruling Justice and Development Party, Mehmet Ali Sahin previously said that if the Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is elected the president, then the current President Abdullah Gul could take the prime minister's post.

He said President Abdullah Gul has extensive political experience, and the ruling party would like to benefit from this experience.

The presidential elections in Turkey are scheduled for August 10, 2014. If none of the candidates gathers 51 percent of votes in the first round, the second round will take place on August 24.

As distinct from the previous presidential elections, the Turkish president will be elected by people, but not by the parliament as of 2014, according to the results of a referendum held in 2007.

The Turkish president will be elected for five-year term instead of the previous seven-year term, according to the referendum results. Turkish opposition is expected to nominate a single candidate for the elections.

Edited by S.I.

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