Local polls begin in Turkey; President Erdogan says they are key for country’s survival

Ankara, March 31: Turkey went to local elections on Sunday, March 31, that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has termed as something that matters for the country's survival.

Erdogan, who won the presidential election last year after he was brought ahead by over a year, has remained Turkey's most dominant political figure for more than a decade and half. However, things have not remained too rosy for the strongman as Turkey's currency has been witnessing bad days while in political and foreign affairs scenario, too, Ankara has been facing uncomfortable situations.

According to a report in Reuters, Erdogan could see an electoral blow in the local polls as his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) may lose control of the capital and even Istanbul, Turkey's largest city of Erdogan was once the mayor, Reuters reported.

That Erdogan has attached much significance to the election became evident when he used the live video of the recent terror attack in two mosques in New Zealand to mobile support in his country.

Over 57 million people are eligible to vote in the upcoming election which started early on Sunday and the results of which are expected to emerge around midnight.