In a surprising turn of events, Sinan Oğan, the candidate who secured the third position in Türkiye's highly anticipated presidential race, made a significant announcement regarding his stance in the upcoming runoff election, revealing that he will be endorsing and supporting President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the final round of voting, scheduled to take place this Sunday.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Oğan said: "I declare we will support the candidate of People's Alliance, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the second round of the presidential election."
Calling on his supporters to back Erdoğan in the runoff, he said: "We had all kinds of consultations before making the last decision. We have made this decision because we believe that our decision is the right decision for our country and the nation."
With the Turkish election witnessing a tight competition that advanced to a second round, Oğan's decision to throw his support behind Erdoğan could have a profound impact on the outcome. As a right-wing figure within the political landscape, Oğan's endorsement carries weight, potentially swaying the opinions of nationalist voters who had previously aligned with his platform.
Millions of voters went to the polls on May 14 to elect the country's president and members of its 600-seat parliament.
President Erdoğan's People's Alliance won a majority in the parliament. Erdoğan will face Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and joint candidate for the six-party opposition Nation Alliance, in the runoff vote.
Erdoğan finished the first round with 49.52% of the vote, while Kılıçdaroğlu came second at 44.88% and Oğan of the ATA Alliance, which has now dissolved, got 5.17%.
Meanwhile, Ümit Özdağ, head of the Victory Party (ZP) once endorsed Oğan as the presidential candidate as part of the ATA Alliance said Oğan's support for Erdoğan reflects solely "his political preferences" and that he will make a separate announcement scheduled for Tuesday.
