Turkey's Constitutional Court invalidates first round in presidential elections
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{{date|May 1, 2007}}
{{Turkey}}
[[Image:Abdullah Gül (Brasília, 19.1.2005).jpeg|thumb|left|120px|Abdullah Gül {{Image source|José Cruz/ABr, 2006}}]]
[[Turkey]]'s {{w|Constitutional Court of Turkey|Constitutional Court}} has annulled the first round of voting in the {{w|Turkish presidential election, 2007|presidential election}}, ruling that there were not enough members present at the parliamentary vote for it to be valid. The court ruled 9-2 in favor of the challenge.

Opposition parties, who boycotted the vote, challenged the result in court on the grounds that the were not enough MPs in attendance to achieve {{w|quorum}} which is set at two-thirds of the 550 member {{w|Grand National Assembly of Turkey}}. The government argued that only one-third or 184 MPs were needed for quorum.

In Friday's vote, {{w|Abdullah Gül}} got 357 votes. The governing party, {{w|Justice and Development Party (Turkey)|Justice and Development Party}} (AKP) has 363 of the 550 seats in parliament. The main opposition party, {{w|Republican People's Party (Turkey)|Republican People's Party}} (CHP), holds 178 seats. Independents hold the remaining 9 seats. <!-- from Wikipedia -->

Government spokesperson {{w|Cemil Çiçek}} said the government will seek to have the required 367 MPs in attendance for a new vote on Wednesday. If the age limit for MPs is lowered to 25 from the current 30, the government is ready to call early parliamentary elections. Early polls have been sought by the opposition and business interests.

==Related news==
*{{wikinews|title=Protests in Turkey over Presidential candidate|date=April 30, 2007}}
*{{wikinews|title=Wikinews Shorts: April 27, 2007|date=April 27, 2007}}
*{{wikinews|title=Turkey's governing party names Abdullah Gül as presidential candidate|date=April 24, 2007}}
*{{wikinews|title=Pro-secular Turks rally against Erdogan's possible presidential candidacy|date=April 15, 2007}}

== Sources ==

{{wikipediapar|Turkish presidential election, 2007}}
*{{source|url=http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSL0167791620070501
|title=Turkish government says to hold new president vote
|author=Hidir Goktas
|pub=Reuters
|date=May 1, 2007}}
*{{source|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6612831.stm
|title=Turkey's presidency vote annulled
|author=
|pub=BBC News Online
|date=May 1, 2007}}
*{{source|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/01/world/europe/01cnd-Turkey.html?ref=world
|title=Turkish Court Blocks Islamist Candidate
|author=Sabrina Tavernise and Graham Bowley
|pub=The New York Times
|date=May 1, 2007}}

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[[Category:Politics and conflicts]]
[[Category:Elections]]
[[Category:Europe]]
[[Category:Turkish Grand National Assembly]]
[[Category:Asia]]
[[Category:Abdullah Gül]]
[[Category:Turkey]]

[[fr:Turquie : l'annulation du premier tour de l'élection présidentielle ouvre une crise politique]]


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Abdullah Gül 
Turkey's Constitutional Court has annulled the first round of voting in the presidential election, ruling that there were not enough members present at the parliamentary vote for it to be valid. The court ruled 9-2 in favor of the challenge.

Opposition parties, who boycotted the vote, challenged the result in court on the grounds that the were not enough MPs in attendance to achieve Grand National Assembly of Turkey. The government argued that only one-third or 184 MPs were needed for quorum.

In Friday's vote, Justice and Development Party (Turkey)|Justice and Development Party (AKP) has 363 of the 550 seats in parliament. The main opposition party, Republican People's Party (CHP), holds 178 seats. Independents hold the remaining 9 seats. 

Government spokesperson  said the government will seek to have the required 367 MPs in attendance for a new vote on Wednesday. If the age limit for MPs is lowered to 25 from the current 30, the government is ready to call early parliamentary elections. Early polls have been sought by the opposition and business interests.

fr:Turquie : l'annulation du premier tour de l'élection présidentielle ouvre une crise politique
Politics and conflicts Elections Europe Turkish Grand National Assembly Asia Abdullah Gül Turkey