Supporters of Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during an election campaign rally in Istanbul, on May 7.
Photographer: Moe Zoyari/Bloomberg
Erdogan Teeters Before a Turkish Vote That’s Got the World Watching
The president molded the country in his own image over the past two decades. Where it goes next has repercussions far beyond its borders.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan was halfway through a well-choreographed TV interview on April 25 when the cameras unexpectedly cut away. Someone in the room could be heard exclaiming “Oh no!” as the broadcast abruptly ended. The Turkish president reappeared 20 minutes later looking pale and tired, said he had a stomach bug, and then disappeared from public view for two days.
In the heat of the most pivotal election campaign in a generation, Turks got a rare glimpse of life without their powerful leader. Now the question resonating worldwide is whether they want to call time on his two decades in power.