Kemal

The results show that the incumbent president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, won 49.39 percent of the votes, and his main rival, Kemal Kılıdaroğlu, won 45 percent, Anadolu Agency reported.

Türkiye has seen one of its most exciting presidential elections with the two strongest candidates current President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Nation Alliance's candidate and Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu in a neck and neck race.

Opposition Nation Alliance's joint president candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has cast his vote with hopes that "spring will come" to Türkiye as a result of the landmark 2023 presidential and parliamentary polls.

Accompanied by Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş, Kılıçdaroğlu voted in a school in the Turkish capital Ankara with his wife, Selvi Kılıçdaroğlu.

Turkey today votes for a president and members of the 600-seat parliament. The main rivals for the post of head of state are the current president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the opposition candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.

Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the chairman of the Republican People's Party (CHP) and the presidential candidate of the six-party Nation Alliance visited Anıtkabir on May 13, a day before the critical elections. 

Anıtkabir is the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the leader of the country's War of Independence and founder of modern Türkiye.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on May 13 that he views the elections as a "democracy celebration for our country's future," in his election message. 

Meanwhile, Erdoğan on May 12 defended Russia's Vladimir Putin from allegations of meddling in Turkey's crucial weekend election.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan will lose both his presidency and his majority in parliament on Sunday. The opposition parties united against him and his Justice and Development Party are convinced of this.

Presidential and parliamentary elections have begun at 8 am local time.

"As of now, all measures for healthy and secure elections have been taken by the Supreme Election Board [YSK] and its election committees in the provinces and districts," YSK head Ahmet Yener told the journalists on May 12.

Some 60 million Turks will cast their votes on May 14 to elect their 13th president and the 600-seat parliament in an election that many describe as the most critical one not only for Türkiye but also for the wider region.

Accusations against Russia were made by the main opponent of Turkish President Recep Erdogan in the upcoming Sunday elections for a new head of state.

Opposition candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu tweeted that Moscow was spreading fake news to influence the campaign.