Turkey: Ultra-nationalist Ogan declares support for Erdogan

Turkey: Ultra-nationalist Ogan declares support for Erdogan
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Sinan Ogan has announced that "they" will support Erdogan in the second round, while the leader of Victory Party that endorsed Ogan said the announcement is not binding for them.

Ultra-nationalist presidential candidate Sinan Ogan, who was left out of the race in Turkey after the first round of the elections, declared support for Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the runoff.

Ogan was endorsed by Ata (Ancestral) Alliance, led by far right Victory Party, and received 5.2% of the vote on 14 May.

He told a press conference on Monday that after meetings with parties that will compete in the runoff, and in consideration of messages received from supporting voters, "they will back the People's Alliance candidate Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the second round of the presidential elections."

Ogan also called on his supporters to vote for Erdogan.

One of the parties in the Ata Alliance, the Justice Party, earlier declared support for Erdogan's rival Kemal Kilicdaroglu.

Following Ogan's announcement, Victory Party leader Umit Ozdag said that Ogan's declaration of support for Erdogan reflected his personal preference.

He tweeted:

"Mr. Sinan Ogan's announcement is an expression of his own political choice. This announcement does not represent or bind the Victory party. I will make an announcement on behalf of the Victory Party tomorrow at 11 AM."

Current president Erdogan narrowly missed the threshold in the first round on 14 May as he received 49.5%, against Kilicdaroglu's 44.9%.