Early results in Turkey's election show President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with lead

Early results in Turkey’s election show President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with lead

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Turkish President and People’s Alliance’s presidential candidate Recep Tayyip Erdogan gestures as he delivers a speech during an election campaign rally in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, May 13, 2023. Turkish politicians held their final rallies on the last hours of campaigning before Saturday, the eve of pivotal presidential and parliamentary elections that could significantly shape the NATO member’s future, before a so-called propaganda ban went into effect. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

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Cevat Cinar on a stretcher casts his ballot at a polling station in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Turkey is voting in pivotal parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has faced in his two decades in power. (AP Photo)

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A woman votes at a polling station in Diyarbakir, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey are heading to the polls on Sunday for landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo/Metin Yoksu)

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A woman walks with a child holding her ballot at a polling station in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey are heading to the polls on Sunday for landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo/Ali Unal)

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Election representative prepare the ballots at a polling station at a polling station in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey go to the polls on Sunday for pivotal parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan walks out of a voting booth at a polling station in Istanbul, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Turkey is voting Sunday in landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge President Erdogan has faced in his two decades in power. (Umit Bektas/Pool Photo via AP)

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, center, and his wife Emine, left, prepare to cast their ballots at a polling station in Istanbul, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Turkey is voting Sunday in landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge President Erdogan has faced in his two decades in power. (Umit Bektas/Pool Photo via AP)

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Youngsters stand next to giant election billboard of Turkish President and People’s Alliance’s presidential candidate Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a campaign rally in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, May 13, 2023. Turkish politicians held their final rallies on the last hours of campaigning before Saturday, the eve of pivotal presidential and parliamentary elections that could significantly shape the NATO member’s future, before a so-called propaganda ban went into effect. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

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Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the 74-year-old leader of the center-left, pro-secular Republican People’s Party, or CHP, votes at a polling station in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey are heading to the polls on Sunday for landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo)

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People wait outside containers to vote in earthquake-hit Malatya, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey are heading to the polls on Sunday for landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (IHA via AP)

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People stand in a queue as they wait to vote at a polling station in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey go to the polls on Sunday for pivotal parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo)

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An election representative prepares the ballots at a polling station at a polling station in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey go to the polls on Sunday for pivotal parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

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A police officer uses binoculars to survey from atop of a building next to a giant banner of Turkish President and People’s Alliance’s presidential candidate Recep Tayyip Erdogan during an election campaign rally in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, May 13, 2023. Turkish politicians held their final rallies on the last hours of campaigning before Saturday, the eve of pivotal presidential and parliamentary elections that could significantly shape the NATO member’s future, before a so-called propaganda ban went into effect. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

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A woman with a baby votes at a polling station in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey are heading to the polls on Sunday for landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo)

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Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the 74-year-old leader of the center-left, pro-secular Republican People’s Party, or CHP, leaves after voting at a polling station in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey are heading to the polls on Sunday for landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo)

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Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the 74-year-old leader of the center-left, pro-secular Republican People’s Party, or CHP, waves to his supporters after voting at a polling station in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey are heading to the polls on Sunday for landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo)

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President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrives to a polling station to vote in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Turkey is voting in pivotal parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has faced in his two decades in power (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, center, arrives at a polling station in Istanbul, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Turkey is voting Sunday in landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge President Erdogan has faced in his two decades in power. (Umit Bektas/Pool Photo via AP)

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, center, greets a man at a polling station in Istanbul, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Turkey is voting Sunday in landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge President Erdogan has faced in his two decades in power. (Umit Bektas/Pool Photo via AP)

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan casts a ballot at a polling station in Istanbul, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Turkey is voting Sunday in landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge President Erdogan has faced in his two decades in power. (Umit Bektas/Pool Photo via AP)

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Safiye Kurtoglu, 110, left, is helped at a polling station in Gokcebay village in Zonguldak, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey are heading to the polls on Sunday for landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (IHA via AP)

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An official prepares ballots at a polling station in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey are heading to the polls on Sunday for landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo/Ali Unal)

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People wait to vote at a polling station in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey are heading to the polls on Sunday for landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo)

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Nazim Cihan, 48, holds his bird as he votes at a polling station in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey go to the polls on Sunday for pivotal parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (iHA via AP)

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A woman votes at a polling station in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey go to the polls on Sunday for pivotal parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

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A woman walks out of a voting booth at a polling station in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Voters in Turkey go to the polls on Sunday for pivotal parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces in his two decades in power. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

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Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the 74-year-old leader of the center-left, pro-secular Republican People’s Party, or CHP, and presidential candidate of Turkey’s main opposition alliance, salutes supporters at a polling station in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Turkey is voting Sunday in landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has faced in his two decades in power. (AP Photo/Ali Unal)

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, center top, and his wife Emine, meet supporters outside a polling station in Istanbul, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Turkey is voting Sunday in landmark parliamentary and presidential elections that are expected to be tightly contested and could be the biggest challenge President Erdogan has faced in his two decades in power. (Umit Bektas/Pool Photo via AP)

By SUZAN FRASER and ZEYNEP BILGINSOY

Early results from Turkey’s national election show President Recep Tayyip Erdogan taking with a solid lead after nearly 20% of ballot boxes were counted, the Turkish state-run news agency says.

Erdogan had 55% of the vote, compared to 39% garnered by main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, according to Anadolu Agency.

Opinion surveys indicated the increasingly authoritarian Erdogan entered his bid for reelection on Sunday trailing a challenger for the first time.

Faik Oztrak, a spokesman for Kilicdaroglu’s center-left party, cautioned the early returns were preliminary and said the “picture is extremely positive” for the opposition.

Erdogan has ruled Turkey as prime minister or president since 2003. Pre-election polling suggested he faced the toughest reelection battle of his two decades leading the NATO member country, which has grappled with economic turmoil and the erosion of democratic checks-and-balances in recent years.

Polls closed in the late afternoon after nine hours of voting in the national election that could grant Erdogan, 69, another five-year term or see him unseated by Kilicdaroglu, who campaigned on a promise to return Turkey to a more democratic path.

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If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote, the winner will be determined in a May 28 run-off.

Voters also elected lawmakers to fill Turkey’s 600-seat parliament, which lost much of its legislative power under Erdogan’s executive presidency. If his political alliance wins, Erdogan could continue governing without much restriction. The opposition has promised to return Turkey’s governance system to a parliamentary democracy if it wins both the presidential and parliamentary ballots.

Pre-election polls gave a slight lead to Kilicdaroglu, 74, who was the candidate of a six-party opposition alliance. He leads the center-left, pro-secular Republican People’s Party, or CHP.

More than 64 million people, including 3.4 million overseas voters, were eligible to vote in the elections, which come the year the country will mark the centenary of its establishment as a republic — a modern, secular state born on the ashes of the Ottoman Empire.

Voter turnout in Turkey is traditionally strong, reflecting citizens’ continued belief in democratic balloting.

Yet Turkey has seen the suppression of freedom of expression and assembly under Erdogan, and it is wracked by a steep cost-of-living crisis that critics blame on the government’s mishandling of the economy. The president believes low interest rates tame inflation, in contrast to orthodox economic theory, and pressured the central bank to reflect his view.

The latest official statistics showed inflation at about 44%, down from around 86%, though independent experts believe costs continue to rise at a much higher rate. The price of vegetables became a campaign issue for the opposition, which used an onion as a symbol.

Turkey is also reeling from the effects of a powerful earthquake that caused devastation in 11 southern provinces in February, killing more than 50,000 people in unsafe buildings. Erdogan’s government has been criticized for its delayed and stunted response to the disaster, as well as a lax implementation of building codes that exacerbated the casualties and misery.

Internationally, the elections were being watched closely as a test of a united opposition’s ability to dislodge a leader who has concentrated nearly all state powers in his hands.

In 2016, Erdogan survived a military coup attempt he blamed on followers of a former ally, U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen. The attempt triggered a large-scale crackdown on Gulen’s supporters and other critics, including pro-Kurdish politicians, for alleged links to terror groups.

In this election campaign, Erdogan used state resources and his domineering position over media to try to woo voters. He accused the opposition of colluding with “terrorists,” of being “drunkards” and of upholding LGBTQ+ rights, which he depicts as threatening traditional family values in the predominantly Muslim nation.

In a bid to secure support from citizens hit hard by inflation, he has increased wages and pensions and subsidized electricity and gas bills, while showcasing Turkey’s homegrown defense and infrastructure projects.

He also extended the political alliance of his ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, to include two nationalist parties, a small leftist party and two marginal Islamist parties.

Kilicdaroglu’s six-party Nation Alliance pledged to dismantle an executive presidential system narrowly voted in by a 2017 referendum. The opposition alliance also promised to restore the independence of the judiciary and the central bank and to reverse crackdowns on free speech and other forms of democratic backsliding under Erdogan.

The alliance includes the nationalist Good Party led by former Interior Minister Meral Aksener, a small Islamist party and two parties that splintered from the AKP, one led by a former prime minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, and the other by a former finance minister, Ali Babacan.

The country’s main Kurdish political party, currently Turkey’s second-largest opposition grouping, is supporting Kilicdaroglu in the presidential race. Erdogan’s government in recent years has targeted the party’s leaders with arrests and lawsuits.

At polling stations, many voters struggled trying to fold bulky ballot papers — they featured 24 political parties competing for seats in parliament — and to fit them into envelopes along with the ballot for the presidency.

“It’s important for Turkey. It’s important for the people,” said Necati Aktuna, a voter in Ankara. “I’ve been voting for the last 60 years. I haven’t seen a more important election that this one.”

Ahmet Yener, the head of the Supreme Electoral Board, said the voting ended with no report of any “negative” incidents.

“We have all missed democracy so much. We all missed being together,” Kilicdaroglu said after voting at a school in Ankara, where his supporters chanted “President Kilicdaroglu!”

“From now on, you will see that spring will come to this country,” he said.

Erdogan said voting was underway “without any problems,” including in the earthquake-affected region.

“It is my hope that after the evening’s count ... there will be a better future for our country, our nation and Turkish democracy,” Erdogan said.

Also running for president was Sinan Ogan, a former academic who has the backing of an anti-immigrant nationalist party. Another candidate, center-left politician Muharrem Ince, dropped out of the race on Thursday following a significant drop in his ratings. But the country’s election board said his withdrawal was invalid and votes for him would get counted.

Some have expressed concerns over whether Erdogan would cede power, if he lost. Erdogan said in an interview with more than a dozen Turkish broadcasters on Friday that he came to power through democracy and would act in line with the democratic process.

Balloting in the 11 provinces affected by the earthquake, where nearly 9 million people were eligible to vote, has raised concerns.

Around 3 million people have left the quake zone for other provinces, but only 133,000 people registered to vote at their new locations. Political parties and non-governmental organizations planned to transport voters by bus but it was not clear how many made the journey back.

Many of the quake survivors cast votes at makeshift polling stations erected on school yards.

In Diyarbakir, a Kurdish-majority city that was hit by the earthquake, Ramazan Akcay arrived early at his polling station to cast his vote.

“God willing it will be a democratic election,” he said. “May it be beneficial in the name of our country.”

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Bilginsoy reported from Istanbul. Mucahit Ceylan contributed from Diyarbakir, Turkey.