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A presidential election in Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus has triggered an unprecedented call for unification with Türkiye, as a prominent Turkish nationalist leader challenged the legitimacy of the vote and urged the territory's parliament to pursue annexation rather than accept the results.
Tufan Erhurman of the Republican Turkish Party (CTP) won the presidential race according to unofficial results announced Saturday, but the outcome immediately drew sharp criticism from Devlet Bahceli, leader of Türkiye's Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).
Bahceli dismissed the election as unrepresentative, pointing to what he described as exceptionally low voter participation.
"The results of the election held in the TRNC were achieved with very low turnout. The fate of Turkish Cypriots cannot be represented with this level of participation," Bahceli said in a statement following completion of the vote count.
The MHP leader issued a sweeping call for Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus's parliament to convene urgently and reject both the election outcome and any movement toward a federal solution on the divided island.
"Even though the election result has been announced by the election board, the TRNC Parliament must convene immediately, declare that the election results and a return to federation are unacceptable, and make a decision to join the Republic of Türkiye," Bahceli stated.
Bahceli's call for Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus to formally join Türkiye represents a dramatic departure from the long-standing international framework seeking a federal solution to reunify the Mediterranean island, which has been divided since 1974.
The statement comes as Erhurman, whose party has historically supported renewed negotiations for a federal settlement, prepares to assume the presidency of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a state recognized only by Türkiye.
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