Istanbul mayoral vote: Is 'disastrous' loss beginning of Erdogan's end? harbinger for US elections?

[hlthe2b]

Link to tweet

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48744733

Rarely is a local election of such national importance. But Mr Erdogan has built his political career over twenty-five years on a sense of victory and an aura of invincibility.

He was born in Istanbul, he ran it as mayor and it propelled him to power first as Prime Minister in 2003 and then President eleven years later.

A 'disastrous miscalculation'

When his AK Party (AKP) lost Istanbul in March this year by a sliver - just 13,000 votes - the electoral board was widely seen as buckling under the government's pressure for a re-run, based on dubious claim of irregularities.

"Whoever wins Istanbul, wins Turkey", said the country's omnipotent President, assuming this was once again a gamble he would win. It was a disastrous miscalculation.

Mr Imamoglu won by a landslide - the largest in a mayoral election here in 35 years. Conservative areas of the city - Fatih (Istanbul's pious heart by the Blue Mosque), Tuzla (the constituency of the government candidate Binali Yildrim) and Uskudar (where President Erdogan himself lives) all backed Mr Imamoglu. How did he achieve it?

[hlthe2b]

1. Hey we get little enough schadenfreude and vindication against authoritarianism lately... KICK

[stillcool]

2. he must really miss Manafort..

[gratuitous]

3. That aura of invincibility seems a bit tarnished

So it's possible to overplay arrogance and boastful indolence? Good to know, since we have an election coming up next year against a very similar administration.