Erdogan lost in Cyprus again, but it wasn't enough

21 years of Recep Tayyip Erdogan's rule in Turkey has been defeated again in elections held in northern Cyprus. However, this did not prevent him from taking the presidency again, receiving 52% of the popular vote, confirming the country's bipolarity.

In northern Cyprus, Erdogan received about 41.85% of the vote, according to unofficial figures, while his opponent Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu received 59.21% of the vote.

In the past 10 years, the percentage of voters from the Turkish community in northern Cyprus who went to the polls has risen from 12% to 59.21%. As the turnout for the election increased, it was observed that Erdogan's votes decreased.

It was seen that Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu increased his vote share in northern Cyprus by 5.72% compared to the first round. Most of the votes Sinan Ogan (3.66%) and Muharrem Ince (3.43%) received in the previous election went to Kılıçdaroğlu. Erdogan, on the other hand, managed to increase his share of the vote by 2.44%.

Starting in 2014, Erdogan gradually lost voter support in northern Cyprus, with a 54.8 percent share in 2014, 48.8 percent in 2018, 39.41 percent in 2023, and then 41.85 percent in 2023. At the same time, the number of voters who went to the polls has steadily increased.

In the 2014 elections, when Erdogan passed 50%, only 12% of Turkish voters in Cyprus went to the polls.

In the last election on May 14, 2023, the turnout was 52% and the vote share for Erdogan did not exceed 39%. Meanwhile, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu received 53.5% of the vote, thus reaching the highest share of the opposition vote in northern Cyprus since 2014.

The May 28, 2023 presidential election attracted 141 polling stations in northern Cyprus, and 59.2% of Turkish citizens went to the polls. Some 72,704 people cast their votes.

According to unofficial data, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu received the highest number of votes with 58.15 percent. Erdogan came second with 41.85% of the vote.

Only 12% of voters turned out for the 2014 elections in northern Cyprus, with Erdogan receiving 54.8% of the vote. In 2018, the vote share for Erdogan fell to 48.8 percent and turnout was 40 percent.

The total number of voters in northern Cyprus increased by 47,940 between 2014 and 2023. The number of registered voters was 92,171 in 2014 and 140,111 in 2023.