According to the "YSK", 71.4% of the eligible 191,153 voters cast their vote in 734 ballot boxes.

The turnout stood at 58.55% in the occupied part of Lefkosia, 70.68% in occupied Famagusta, 68.6% in occupied Keryneia, 71.9% in occupied Morfou, 77.73% in occupied Trikomo and 81% in occupied Lefka.

According to the results, the TDP "candidate" Mehmet Harmanc? was re-elected as the "mayor of the occupied part of Lefkosia" for the second term.

Independent "candidate"Ismail Arter was re-elected for the second term in occupied Famagusta and Independent candidate Nidai Gungordu was re-elected for the second term in occupied Keryneia.

The UBP "candidate" Mahmut Ozc?nar re-elected for the 6 term in occupied Morfou, the UBP "candidate" Hasan Sad?koglu was re-elected for the second term in occupied Trikomo and CTP "candidate" Aziz Kaya was re-elected for the second term in occupied Lefka.

[02] How the Turkish Cypriot press covers the results of the "municipal elections"

Under the title "The people are satisfied", Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper reports that according to the "unofficial results", only five of the existing "mayors" changed and that the "people" decided that 23 of them should continue their duty. The Republican Turkish Party (CTP) won 10 "municipalities", independent candidates 9, the National Unity Party (UBP) 7, the Democratic Party (DP) one and the Social Democracy Party (TDP) one.

Current mayor Mehmet Harmanci was the winner in the occupied part of Nicosia, notes the paper adding that Harmanci is a member of the TDP and secured the support of the CTP. His opponents were Hasan Sertoglu (supported by the UBP) and Gencay Eroglu (supported by the DP). The paper describes as a "surprise" the fact that the "mayor" of occupied Lapithos, Fuat Namsoy lost the "election". Other "mayors" who could not be reelected were those of occupied Agios Sergios and Chatoz villages. The People's Party (HP), which participates in the "coalition government", could not win any "municipality".

Halkin Sesi reports that Harmanci secured 52,84% of the votes in the occupied part of Nicosia, Sertoglu 36,29% and Eroglu 7,66%.

Yeni Duzen reports that there was no surprise in the "elections" and that the HP and the settlers' Revival Party (YDP) could not win any "municipality".

Under the title "The people are satisfied", Havadis reports that the "mayors" in the six biggest "municipalities" did not change. Mehmet Harmanci in the occupied part of Nicosia, Ismail Arter (independent coming from the UBP) in occupied Famagusta, Nidai Gungordu (independent coming from the UBP) in occupied Keryneia, Mahmut Ozcinar (independent coming from the UBP) in occupied Morfou, Hasan Sadikoglu (UBP) in occupied Trikomo and Aziz kaya (CTP) in occupied Lefka were reelected.

Kibrisli covers the issue under the title "The persons and not the parties won!"

Detay reports that the turnout was 71,41%.

Afrika reports that the "municipal elections" in the occupied area of Cyprus remained in the shadow of the elections in Turkey.

(I/Ts.)

[03] Afrika was confiscated yesterday, four TV channels were banned from broadcasting

"YSK's" chairperson Narin Sefik said also that one website and four TV channels were banned from broadcasting yesterday because they had violated the "election ban", which was valid until 19.00. She said that the website was HaberKibris and the TV channels were Kibris TV, Diyalog TV, Genc TV and Kanal T.

(I/Ts.)

[04] Ankara's interference for the graduation diploma of Hala Sultan Theology College

Cemal Ozyigit, self-styled minister of education refused to sign 50 secondary school diplomas featuring photos of girls wearing headscarves and wanted an opinion from the "attorney general's office". This caused anger among parents.

Under the title "A diplomat earthquake", Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (23.06.18), on its front page, reported that the Turkish Deputy Prime Minister responsible for Cyprus affairs Recep Akdag called the "prime minister" Tufan Erhurman to be informed on this issue. Akdag also took the guarantee that this issue would be ended immediately.

Akdag described the initial decision to Ankara Anatolia news agency (AA) as "fascistic" and "unacceptable", adding: "I spoke earlier with the prime minister [Erhurman] and he also expressed his sadness and said that they would immediately put an end to this legislation. He has guaranteed to me that diplomas with pictures of students with headscarves will be handed out and this is how I wished the issue to be resolved".

Meanwhile, the paper reported that at the ceremony, the students were given 'plain' certificates, due to the absence of Ozyigit's countersignature. Later outraged demonstrators gathered outside the "ministry building" to demand a meeting with Ozyigit. After the request was rejected, they moved on to the offices of "prime minister". Shortly afterwards, it was announced that the "education ministry" would approve the diplomas, after receiving an 'opinion' from the "attorney-general's office".

Ozyigit said that they do not want to cause crisis and they just asked a "legal opinion". He added that it is their responsibility to build an education system, which respects everyone's values, beliefs and culture. However, earlier he had argued that the wearing of headscarves in high school diploma photos was against the "law".

Serdar Denktas, self-styled minister of finance, wrote on social media: "There is a constant desire to create political tension over the Hala Sultan Theology college. We say freedom, we say equality, we say human rights".

However, Turkish Cypriot daily Afrika newspaper (23.06.18), in its front page, reported that Sener Elcil, general secretary of the Turkish Cypriot Teachers' union (KTOS), argued that the ruling government of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) is trying to transform Turkey to Saudi Arabia and then to start the same oppresion also to Cyprus (referring to the occupied area of Cyprus).

Columnist Levent Ozadam, writing in Turkish Cypriot Kibris Postasi (23.06.18) wondered whether the crisis was solved by the "attorney general's office" or with the instructions of Recep Akdag.

Columnist Serhar Incirli, writing also in Kibris Postasi (23.06.18), argued that the truth behind this crisis is that "North Cyprus is in absolute terms under Turkey's control". He added: "the authority to open religious schools is not under the responsibility of the TRNC ministry of education or the govenrment. The dress code of these schools is not under our authority". He concluded by saying that the issue was not about giving the diploma to students wearing headscarves but the fact that a top official from Turkey was satisfied. Incirli wondered why then the "government" was elected.

(DPs)

[05] How the Turkish Cypriot press covers the results of the elections in Turkey

Under the title "The victory belongs to Erdogan again", Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper reports that Recep Tayyip Erdogan became the first President of the new system in Turkey and that the opposition objected to the results of the elections and claimed that manipulation existed, but in the end the result did not change.

Under the title "The last sultan", Afrika recalls that it had expressed the view that no dictator leaves through elections, adding that its assessments were proved to be correct. The paper notes that Erdogan declared his victory from the first round before the High Election Council (YSK) announcing the final results, in an election which took place under emergency rule and with manipulation in many areas.

Under the title "Erdogan is the President of the people", Kibrisli reports that right after the announcement of the results Erdogan started receiving calls from leaders of foreign countries who congratulated him.

Demokrat Bakis underlines Erdogan's statement that "Turkey has given lessons for democracy to the entire world".

Vatan covers the issue under the title "The voters in Turkey said continue to Erdogan".

Star Kibris reports that Erdogan received more than 51% in the occupied area of the Republic of Cyprus and that the discussion which was about to start regarding the validity of the results ended with Ince's statement that he accepts Erdogan's victory.

Under the title "Double victory", Hakikat reports that the AKP won yesterday its sixth election race in which it participated and that Erdogan became the first President of the new era.

(I/Ts.)

[06] The Turks in the occupied area of Cyprus votes also for Erdogan

The turnout of the Turks citizens living in the occupied area of Cyprus was 36.83%, as the paper writes. According to the results, the 50,81% voted for Erdogan, the 36,31% for Republican People's Party (CHP) candidate Muharrem Ince, the 7,72% for People's Democratic Party's (HDP) candidate Selahattin Demirtas and the 4,72% for Good Party's (IP) candidate Meral Aksener.

(DPs)

[07] Turkish citizens celebrates the victory of AKP in the occupied area of Cyprus

(DPs)

[08] Enver Haskasap participates in the DMEC in Hungary

(DPs)

[B] Turkish Press

[01] The results of the Presidential and Parliamentary elections in Turkey

Boxes opened up to: 99.16%

Total numbers of voters: 59.354.840

Tayyip Erdogan: 52.55%

Muharrem Ince 30,7%

Selahattin Demirtas 8,4%

Meral Aksener7,3%

Temel Karamollaoglu 0,9%

Dogu Perincek 0,2%

In addition the results of the Parliamentary elections are as follows:

Boxes opened up to: 100%

People's Alliance: 53,48%" (339 Deputies)

Justice and Development Party (AKP): 42,28% (290 Deputies)

Nationalist Movement Party (MHP): 11,20% (49 Deputies)

National Alliance: (129 Deputies)

Republican People's Party (CTP): 22,79% (146 Deputies)

Good Party (IP): 10,14% (47 Deputies)

Felicity Party (SD): 1,36% (0 Deputies)

Not participating in an alliance:

People's Democracy Party (HDP): 11,52% (68 Deputies)

[02] First speech of Erdogan after his win

Addressing the nation from the balcony of Justice and Development Party (AKP) headquarters in the capital Ankara after his election victory, Erdogan said every one of 81 million Turkish citizens is a winner.

"The winners of the June 24 elections are Turkey, the Turkish nation, the sufferers of our region and all oppressed in the world," he said.

The President also thanked the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader, members, and voters.

"I would like to express my gratitude to my people and my brothers and sisters who put their trust in me, my alliance, and my party," he said.

Erdogan pointed out the benefits of forming alliances in the elections. "As you see, this [alliance] has become beneficial both for other [political] parties and our country," he said.

The President said he received the citizens' message in the polls. "In this term, we will be before our nation and make up for our shortcomings," said Erdogan.

"Starting from tomorrow, we will be in a rush trying to deliver on promises that we have made to our nation," he said.

He also said his government would confront terror groups more decisively. "We will increase our country's international reputation," he added.

"Immediately after the oath-taking ceremony, we will start implementing our program by identifying our bureaucrats," Erdogan said, vowing to work day and night as "we have no single moment to lose."

"Turkey has decided to take the side of growth, development, investment, enrichment and a reputable, honorable and influential country in all areas in the world," Erdogan said.

Reporting on the same issue, Turkish daily Sabah (26.06.18) reports that as of today, the government system of the country, which was been at work since the formation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, will begin to change from the parliamentary system to the Presidential executive system.

The constitutional changes necessary to switch the government from a parliamentary to a presidential system were approved by the public in last year's referendum on April 16. The most prominent change is that the government will now be headed by a President, rather a Prime Minister, as the post is now dismantled.

In a sign of more streamlined governance, the number of ministers, who will be appointed by the President, will decrease from 21 to 16. The Ministries will not be removed rather they will be combined, with the Foreign Ministry and European Union Ministry united under a single portfolio.

[03] Main opposition CHP candidate Ince concedes election defeat, refuting rumors he was threatened

"Nobody threatened me and nobody can. Rumors saying I went to the palace and spoke to Erdogan are all wrong. It is wrong to spread such baseless rumors," Ince said at a press conference at the CHP headquarters in Ankara on June 25.

When he was asked why he waited for hours to speak publicly, he said he was waiting for the "final results as it was still possible that Erdogan's support could go below 50%."

"Did they steal votes? Yes, they did. But did they steal 10 million votes? No," Ince added, stating that Erdogan's victory margin was so wide that it "cannot be explained merely by election irregularities."

"There is no big gap between the Supreme Election Board [YSK] data and the data that we collected ourselves. The difference is not big enough to change the outcome," he said.

However, Ince stressed that there were "some issues" with the election process that demand an explanation, such as the fact that Erdogan scored even higher than the controversial April 2017 referendum in which Turks narrowly approved a shift to the presidential system.

Ince also addressed Erdogan directly and called him to be "the president of everyone," instead of acting as the head of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

The CHP candidate refused to answer questions about the future of his party but did stress that he got 30% of the vote, a feat that the main opposition party has not been able to achieve since 1977.

"If other opposition parties could have scored a little higher, the election could have gone to a second round," he said.

"The CHP also has made mistakes but I won't speak about them in front of the media," Ince added, noting that he would soon meet CHP leader Kemal K?l?cdaroglu to evaluate the results.

[04] Demirtas issued a statement from the prison about the election results

Demirtas who received 7.5% stated that despite been held in prison he made everything he could for the people to fulfill his role and mission. He also congratulated his party for entering the Turkish Parliament overcoming the 10% threshold noting that is a great success.

He also said that with trust and faith the people will continue its struggle for peace and freedom in every civil arena within and out of the Parliament.

(CS)

[05] "A snap analysis of Turkey's snap election"

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/opinion/murat-yetkin/a-snap-analysis-of-turkeys-snap-election-133742):

"[…] It is possible to draw the following initial conclusions about the dual presidential and parliamentary elections:

- Erdogan's tactic of allying with Bahceli proved a success. The June 24 election proved that without the MHP, Erdogan could not be re-elected and the AK Parti could lose its majority in parliament.

- Erdogan's AK Parti might have to work with the MHP as a coalition partner in parliament if he wants to work together in legislative work as well. Alternatively, if Erdogan wants to part ways with the MHP he has to attract the necessary number of MPs from other parties in order to grab 300 seats in the 600-seat parliament or has to ally with another party in parliament.

- Bahceli proved Aksener and others wrong by showing that the MHP is not finished yet. The MHP's resilience was one of the two surprises of this election. The MHP has become a key player in parliament.

- K?l?cdaroglu's tactic to lend 15 CHP deputies to Meral Aksener's IYI (Good) Party to help her run as a presidential candidate and later ally with IYI Party did not bring success to the CHP. Aksener attracted votes from the CHP, but not that much from the AK Parti, and less than it hoped from the MHP, from which she had defected to establish IYI Party. Aksener failed as a promising leader but nevertheless won seats in the parliament, mainly thanks to her alliance with K?l?cdaroglu.

- On the other hand, K?l?cdaroglu's tactic to show his rival in the party, Muharrem Ince, as a presidential candidate proved relative success. Ince demonstrated that with his charisma and popularity that he has the capability to raise the CHP's vote potential from around 25 % to 30. The political performance of Ince was the other surprise of the June 24 elections.

- But the CHP got some 7 % lower than its candidate Ince. The CHP apparently lost votes not only to the IYI Party but also to the HDP, not because its voters politically support the HDP but because they wanted the HDP to exceed the 10 % national threshold and get into parliament in order to reduce AK Parti seats in parliament. It is likely that the election results might shake the CHP, forcing it to an emergency congress which might elect Ince as party chair in order to have a chance in the March 2019 municipal elections.

- The HDP is back in parliament thanks to the social democratic and liberal votes given to them, otherwise it may have not been possible for them to be represented in parliament. Now could be a time for the HDP to draw a clear line between itself and the terror acts of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) despite sharing the same grassroots for the sake of a better democracy.

Reporting on the same issue Turkish daily Sabah (25.06.18 https://www.dailysabah.com/elections/2018/06/25/kurdish-votes-distributed-between-erdogan-demirtas-in-east-southeast) reports that Kurdish voters in eastern and southeastern parts of the country played a critical role in the overall outcome of the elections.

The Peoples' Democratic Party's (HDP) presidential candidate Demirtas received the majority of the vote in southeastern and eastern Diyarbak?r, Mardin, Batman, Siirt, S?rnak, Hakkari, Van, Agr? and Igd?r provinces. While President Erdogan received around 28 % of the vote in Diyarbak?r by the time Daily Sabah went to print, he garnered around 37 % of the vote in Mardin. He was estimated to have increased his votes in Mardin while losing a couple % of the vote in Diyarbak?r. Diyarbak?r and Mardin are known to be two of the most significant Kurdish-dominated provinces across Turkey.

The HDP won 65 % of the vote in Diyarbak?r and 56 % of the vote in Mardin. Meanwhile, the pro-PKK HDP steered into Parliament once again after passing the 10 % national election threshold.

The pro-PKK party also came out victors in the eastern and southeastern provinces. In S?rnak and Hakkari provinces, where the party is relatively stronger, it garnered nearly 70 % of the vote. In the Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) southeastern stronghold Sanl?urfa province, President Erdogan received more than 65 % of the vote while the AK Party attracted around 53 % of the population, winning eight seats in Parliament.

[06] Statements by Bahceli on the election results: "The MHP has put his signature in a historical success today"

Delivering a speech outside of the MHP headquarters right after the announcement of the unofficial results of Turkey's presidential and parliamentary elections, Bacheli said: "Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan is the first President to be elected with the new system. In this framework, the elections were ended in the first round and those who were expected for a crisis to occur were baffled. […]. Today is a historical day. The Nationalist Movement Party has stood behind the President stringently. The Turkish nation has made its preference in the ballot boxes. The elections took place in a climate of calm and we are extremely pleased from the high turnout. As of today, Turkey is passing into the presidential system. […].

Stressing to the important success of the MHP, Bahceli stated that the nationalist party, which backed President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the presidential race, achieved an estimated 49 seats in the new 600-member Parliament, according to results that still require the election board's approval. Bahceli underlined that the MHP will have from now on a key role in Parliament. "The MHP secured its position and is now likely to be a key player in helping the AKP maintain a parliamentary majority", Bahceli, inter alia, said.

(AK)

[07] CHP accuses Anadolu Agency of 'manipulating' initial election results

"According to our information, with five % of ballot boxes opened, our candidate's vote is 40,35 % while Erdogan's vote is 46 %," CHP spokesman Bulent Tezcan said at a press conference late on June 24 as votes were still being counted.

Tezcan said Anadolu Agency was deliberately manipulating the flow of information on election results by claiming that Erdogan's votes were at 59.8 % with 20 % of votes counted.

As of 7.30 p.m. local time with 39 % of ballot boxes opened, Anadolu Agency was reporting that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was leading the presidential race with 57.1 % of the votes, while the CHP's nominee Muharrem Ince followed him with 28.2 %.

"We are following the manipulations carried out by Anadolu Agency minute by minute. We will never leave the ballot boxes unattended," Tezcan vowed.

In addition, Istanbul T24 (26.06.18 Pro-secular, independent news portalhttp://t24.com.tr/ broadcast that Good Party leader and presidential candidate Meral Aksener strongly reacted to the early results published by the Anadolu Agency. Aksener said: "To my brethren who are ballot box officials and witnesses: We are not leaving the ballot boxes! We shall protect the ballot boxes until the end, regardless and independent of Anadolu Agency's manipulative results!"

Aksener, who made a statement about the election results on Twitter, added: "…We shall wait by the ballot boxes until we receive the wet signed and sealed copies!"

[08] Election board to look into allegations of vote-rigging in Turkey's southeast

"We have taken necessary initiatives to launch administrative and judicial processes regarding alleged safety concerns at certain polling stations in Suruc," YSK head Sadi Guven said on June 24.

"Voting continues peacefully across the country and the turnout rate has been good," Guven told state-run Anadolu Agency.

The main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) earlier on June 24 appealed to the YSK, asking the election body to take action following allegations regarding voting irregularities and other allegations that some election observers were not allowed to do their jobs and they were even attacked at balloting stations in Suruc and some other districts of Sanl?urfa, daily Cumhuriyet has reported.

Meanwhile, police captured four sacks full of official ballot papers in a car that they stopped by firing in the air.

Three people, who attempted to transfer the ballot papers to voting centers, were detained, according to Demiroren News Agency.

Polls open in Turkey's landmark electionsPolls open in Turkey's landmark elections

Tension was running high in Suruc even before the elections.

Three people were killed and nine were injured in an armed clash during an election tour of a delegation from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Suruc on June 14.

The delegation, led by AKP MP Ibrahim Y?ld?z, was visiting local shopkeepers in Suruc's Cumhuriyet neighborhood ahead of the polls.

A group of shopkeepers initially engaged in a heated argument with the AKP delegation, which eventually turned violent. Guns and clubs were used in the ensuing clash, reports said.

Three people, including Y?ld?z's brother, were killed and nine, including Y?ld?z's four other brothers, were reportedly injured.

Several officials of the Democratic Regions Party (DBP), a local affiliate of the Kurdish issue-focused Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), are among the casualties, local media reported.

In addition, Turkish Daily Hurriyet (25.06.18http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/iyi-party-district-head-shot-dead-during-voting-in-turkish-election-133727) writes that Mehmet S?dd?k Durmaz, a local representative for the IYI (Good) Party from the Karacoban district of the eastern province of Erzurum, was shot dead during the voting process on June 24, his party has announced.

"[Durmaz] was brutally shot dead by inglorious, dishonest people," stated a post shared by the IYI Party's local Twitter account.

"We are now responsible for seeking justice through the legal system," the party added, offering condolences to Durmaz's loved ones.

[09] How the Turkish Press covered the presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkey