European Union: Turkish Officials Should Seek Broader National Consensus

European Union officials reacted to the announcement of Recep Tayyip Erdogan's victory in Turkey's constitutional referendum by urging the government to strive for the greatest possible consensus among its people. Meanwhile, reports have emerged of opposition gatherings in the streets of Turkey, accompanied by slogans against Erdogan. The Turkish government announced the results of the constitutional referendum on Sunday evening, indicating a very close victory for supporters of the constitutional changes and Erdogan. However, opposition parties have called for a recount of 60% of the votes, claiming signs of fraud in the election. The British newspaper Daily Mail reported that thousands of Erdogan's opponents took to the streets of Istanbul on Sunday evening, banging pots and pans in protest against the referendum results. The EU's response to the announcement of the referendum results has been considered somewhat cautious. According to the Associated Press, Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, along with Federica Mogherini, the EU's foreign policy chief, and Johannes Hahn, the EU Commissioner, issued a joint statement saying they are awaiting reports from international observers of the referendum. The statement indicated that Turkey's constitutional reforms would be assessed in light of its commitments as a candidate for EU membership. Ultimately, EU officials stated, 'Given the close result of the referendum and the profound constitutional changes, we urge Turkish officials to seek the greatest possible consensus nationally on these changes.' This referendum will change Turkey's governance system from parliamentary to presidential, eliminating the position of prime minister. The proposed changes will take effect two years later, allowing Erdogan the opportunity to run for two additional presidential terms after his current term ends in 2019.