Turkey Elections: Initial results: Erdogan's AK party losing Ankara, Istanbul

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03:30

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his conservative party have suffered major election losses. The main opposition party is claiming victory in Ankara and Istanbul. Erdogan's party says it will appeal results in each city. CGTN's Michal Bardavid reports from Istanbul.

Initial results are in for Turkey's municipal elections and they are surprising indeed. Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party CHP won in both the capital Ankara and the country's business hub Istanbul, a feat CHP hasn't managed to pull off in 25 years. And a major blow for the ruling government.

Undoubtedly also a heartbreak for the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who had declared a "love story" with Istanbul on billboards all across the city. Losing the capital Ankara carries symbolic significance as well.

MICHAL BARDAVID ISTANBUL "Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan had been rallying for his AK party with incredible force, with six rallies held just on Saturday, a day before the voting. He had labelled these elections a 'matter of survival' for the country, hoping to ignite his supporters."

For the AK Party, winning Istanbul was so critical that their candidate was Binali Yildirim, who not only served as Prime Minister but also as parliament speaker. Yildirim says party officials will object to the results, claiming there are too many "invalid" votes.

On Sunday night Erdogan made his usual balcony speech, only this time his tone was different. It's the first time in over two decades the president had to accept partial defeat.

RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN TURKISH PRESIDENT "Every victory and every loss is the will of our nation and we have to accept this fact as a necessity of democracy. We will admit that we won people's hearts in cities we won, but we were not successful enough in cities we lost and we will act accordingly."

Erdogan also emphasized there was much to celebrate as his AK Party still won over 51 percent of votes across the country.

Many analysts see the results as a reaction to the current government and Erdogan's leadership. The opposition frequently criticized the scope of the government's crackdown following the 2016 failed coup. And the AK Party has drifted away from the EU accession process, which is also causing some dissatisfaction, mostly in metropolitan areas.

Voters were also likely driven by financial factors.

SAKIR DINCSAHIN, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR POLITICAL SCIENCE AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS HASAN KALYONCU UNIVERSITY "I believe that the message from metropolitan cities was mainly economic, the voters in Istanbul and Ankara, even the ones who voted for AK Party before, they are the ones feeling the economic difficulties the most, they are the ones living in these areas."

Turkey's inflation is hovering around 20 percent while the Turkish Lira lost about a third of its value last year.

The fight is not over yet, objections can be made until the 4th of April and a decision will be made by the Supreme Electoral Board by April 13th. Still, Erdogan has already stated he has taken lessons from the defeats and now looks ahead to deal with the country's issues. Michal Bardavid, CGTN, Istanbul.