1 / 12Turks prepare for a decisive presidential run-off on May 28, as Tayyip Erdogan and Kemal Kilicdaroglu vie for power. Ahead of the run-off vote, here’s a look at the electoral process and reasons behind the repeat polls in Turkey. (Image: Shutterstock)
2 / 12Why Turkey is going to polls again | No candidate secured the required 50 percent of the vote in the first round of the Turkish presidential election, which means Turkish voters will return to the polls on May 28 to pick a president. (Image: Reuters)
3 / 12What's a run-off vote | A run-off vote is a second round of voting that takes place when no candidate receives more than half the presidential vote share. The first round of the Turkish presidential elections were held on May 14. (Image: Reuters)
4 / 12How Turkey elects its president | The country's president is elected through a two-round voting system. A candidate must obtain more than 50 percent of polled votes to be declared the winner. If no candidate secures a majority in the first round, the winner is decided in a run-off between the top two challengers from the first round. (Image: Reuters)
5 / 12Voting process | The ballot for the presidential elections have the names, party affiliations and photographs of all candidates. Voters stamp 'yes' for their candidate of choice. The term of the president of Turkey is five years long and the president cannot be removed from office before the end of term. (Image: Shutterstock)
6 / 12Qualifications for election as president | Eligibility | To be eligible as a presidential candidate, one must have Turkish citizenship, a minimum age of 40, and a bachelor's degree in any discipline. (Image: Reuters)
7 / 12Nomination Process | Any party that has won five percent of the threshold vote in the previous parliamentary election can nominate a candidate. Parties can also collectively field a candidate by forming alliances and passing the majority vote together. Independent candidates are eligible to contest provided they collect 1,00,000 signatures from registered voters. (Image: Shutterstock)
8 / 12Battle For Turkey: Part II | Top two contenders | Recep Tayyip Erdogan | Turkey's current president, Erdogan leads the People's Alliance which includes nationalist and Islamist parties. He has been in power for two decades, first as prime minister of the country, then as its president. His increasingly authoritarian rule has led to friction with some allies. (Image: Reuters)
9 / 12Battle For Turkey: Part II | Top two contenders | Kemal Kilicdaroglu | Centre-left and pro-secular, Kilicdaroglu is the leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) — the country's main opposition party. A former civil servant, Kilicdaroglu has promised to restore the country's democracy and improve human rights. (Image: Reuters)
10 / 12First round results | The first-round witnessed a high voter turnout of 86.98 percent, with Erdogan securing 49.5 percent of the vote, followed by Kemal Kilicdaroglu and Sinan Ogan with 44.9 percent and 5.2 percent respectively. (Image: Reuters)
11 / 12A shot in the arm for Erdogan | Sinan Ogan has formally endorsed Erdogan for the run-off vote to be held on May 28. Given how tight the margins are, Ogan's 5.25 percent could play a pivotal role in the outcome of the second round. (Image: Reuters)
12 / 12Has Turkey ever had a run-off before? | This would be the first run-off vote under the country's new electoral system. Turkey transitioned from a parliamentary system to a presidential one in July 2018. Before that, Turkish presidents were chosen by parliamentarians and their position was largely symbolic. Presidential elections went to a third round in 1989, 1993, 2000, and 2007, but both the voting and political systems were different from the ones in place now. (Image: Reuters)
