Two Days Until Turkey's Elections | Muharrem İnce's Withdrawal Increases Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's Chances

As Turkey's presidential and parliamentary elections are set to take place on Sunday, candidates are making their final efforts to attract undecided voters. Some polls indicate that with the withdrawal of a candidate, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's chances have increased. On Thursday, Muharrem İnce, a candidate in the elections, withdrew from the race. Following this withdrawal, speculation suggests that Kılıçdaroğlu's chances against Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have improved. İnce's withdrawal is significant in the last two days leading up to the elections. In the 2018 elections, İnce was Erdoğan's main rival and managed to secure thirty percent of the votes. He had less chance in this year's polls, with some previous surveys indicating he would likely receive around ten percent of the vote. Supporters of both candidates hope to gain İnce's supporters' votes. The Saros Research Institute announced in its latest poll that Kılıçdaroğlu is likely to receive 51 percent of the votes, while Erdoğan is expected to get about 46 percent. Although many analysts still believe that no candidate will achieve fifty percent of the votes, leading to a second round of elections, some argue that Kılıçdaroğlu's chances for a first-round victory have increased due to İnce's withdrawal. Kılıçdaroğlu has gathered a coalition of parties, and even some former allies of Erdoğan, including Ahmet Davutoğlu, have joined him. Erdoğan, who has been in power for two decades, has seen his position weakened following the recent earthquake and post-COVID inflation. He also spoke to his supporters in Ankara on Thursday. According to the latest polls, about 8 percent of participants have not yet made a decision regarding the elections, and their votes could change the election results. If no candidate receives 50 percent of the votes in the elections on May 24, a second round will be held on June 7 between the two candidates who receive the most votes. Reports from the Voice of America highlight the influential role of the Kurds in the upcoming elections, with Kılıçdaroğlu leading in the polls against Erdoğan.