CHP, IYIP agree to move on with joint presidential candidate

Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and nationalist Good Party (IYIP) agreed on the continuation of their previous decision of running with a joint candidate in the presidential election.

CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu and IYIP leader Meral Aksener’s meeting on Monday has resulted in a consensus, the two parties’ senior officials told Diken news website.

While CHP was in favour of its leader’s nomination as the joint candidate, the Good Party Chair Aksener has lately resisted to Kilicdaroglu’s nomination, arguing that the name to be nominated should be a person with a certain possibility of winning the polls.

Turkey is facing presidential and parliamentary elections by June 18 at the latest.

Six opposition parties including CHP and IYIP who teamed up to restore a parliamentary system in Turkey are also working on putting a joint candidate to run against Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the presidential elections.

The leaders of the Nation Alliance (table of six) are set to meet on March 2 to determine their joint candidate. The leaders are expected to announce the candidate in a special ceremony on the same day or a few days after the March 2 meeting.