Turkey’s Erdogan declares victory in referendum to expand his powers, but opposition parties contest results

One of the opposition parties, the pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party, or HDP, posted a message on Twitter saying it would appeal two-thirds of the votes.

The preliminary result, if confirmed, would cap a dramatic ascent for the populist Erdogan, a onetime mayor of Istanbul whose brand of Islamist and nationalist politics, and bareknuckle approach to his adversaries, have handed him and his party a string of election wins since 2002.

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The president’s opponents have accused Erdogan of presiding over a stiflingly repressive state in recent years and said the constitutional changes, which will transform the system of government from a parliamentary to a presidential system, tilted the country towards the autocracies of the Middle East and away from Europe — delivering Turkey to one-man rule…

His supporters included his core constituency of conservative Muslims, who have delivered unflinching support to Erdogan for years as a champion of their concerns. He also successfully courted members of a Turkish nationalist party, who helped propel the constitutional amendments through the parliament.

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