Turkey local polls to be 'feast for democracy'

Turkey will go to polls on Sunday for local elections following campaign rallies and politicians' addresses held in a democratic environment.

Turkey held its first local elections on Aug. 12, 1930, according to data compiled by Anadolu Agency. On Sunday, the local polls will be held for the 19th time.

Turkish citizens went to the ballot boxes for local elections in 1934, 1938, 1942, 1946, 1950, 1955, 1963, 1968, 1973, 1977, 1984, 1989, 1994, 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2014.

Sunday's polls will mark the first local elections in Turkey under the new presidential government system, adopted in an April 2017 referendum.

Some 1,389 candidates will run in the elections which will see the participation of 12 political parties as well as independent candidates for 30 metropolitans, 51 provinces, 519 metropolitan districts, 403 districts, 386 towns.

The voters will also elect 50,236 mukhtars, including 32,046 for neighborhoods and 18,190 for villages, on Sunday.

Some 23,044 municipalities, 1,277 provincial councils, 128,172 elder councils, 73,506 members of elder councils will be elected, as well.

More than 1 million candidates of all the political parties will run in the elections.
Environmentalist campaign rallies

Political parties held their campaigns in a democratic environment for nearly two months.

Prior to the election campaign, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had said his Justice and Development (AK) Party would avoid noise and visual pollution in campaign rallies.

Other political parties also extended support to the "environmentalist campaign" launched by the ruling AK Party as all parties used considerably fewer banners, flyers, and other printed materials during their campaign.

Most of the parties distributed cotton bags with pictures and party logos on them.
Democratic election race

Election campaigning was done in a democratic environment where political parties opened adjacent campaign offices and brandishing their banners and posters side by side.

Candidates also took to social media for campaigning, sharing their election videos and pledges on through digital media, while some candidates appeared on streaming television channels.