TURKEY’S President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday acknowledged that Sunday’s results from local elections had marked a “turning point” for his party but promised to “respect the decision of the nation”.

“Unfortunately, we have not obtained the results that we wanted,” he said, speaking from the headquarters of his Justice and Development Party (AKP), to a subdued crowd.

Partial results indicated major gains by opposition parties in the nationwide elections.

“We will of course respect the decision of the nation, we will avoid being stubborn, acting against the national will and questioning the power of the nation,” he added.

The opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) said it held on to Istanbul and Ankara in the elections while making gains in other traditionally AKP cities across the country. AFP

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