The conduct of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan outside a polling place has the Islamist leader’s critics accusing him of naked bribery.
Erdoğan was captured on video handing out cash money in Istanbul on Sunday.
The Turkish leader was re-elected to another five-year term the same day.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan handed out money to supporters outside the polling station where he cast his ballot in the runoff election https://t.co/DM7VCR8xW5 pic.twitter.com/4uqeIrattJ
— Reuters (@Reuters) May 28, 2023
In the clip, Erdoğan was shown handing out 200 lira banknotes, according to the U.K. Guardian.
The bills would exchange for approximately $10.
It’s not the first time the politician has used the tactic.
Erdoğan was recorded handing out money earlier this month, on election day for the first round of the Turkish presidential election. Erdogan failed to win a majority in that election, forcing Sunday’s runoff.
Erdogan hands out cash to kids before casting his vote, appearing to violate Turkish law, which bars candidates from campaigning on election day: pic.twitter.com/dm1dHMiCgB
— David Lepeska (@dlepeska) May 14, 2023
Some international observers pointed to the publicized use of seeming bribery as an example of corruption, whereas others merely acknowledged Erdoğan’s apparent shamelessness.
This isn’t the worst of it. Just the most brazen.
— rohan (@rohan10) May 28, 2023
Finally an honest politician.
— Live Free Logic (@LiveFreeLogic) May 28, 2023
One Twitter user provided a more innocent possible explanation — suggesting the Islamist leader was merely handing out money to children in what would amount to a local custom in Turkey.
I am no fan of Erdogan. But if you notice he is handing it out only to children. As he has done in many other times in the past and is customary in Turkey to give “pocket money” to celebrate certain occasions.
— Lefteris Karapetsas | Hiring for @rotkiapp (@LefterisJP) May 28, 2023
Erdogan has been a political power in Turkey for two decades, serving as mayor of Istanbul from 1994 to 1998, prime minister from 2003 to 2014, and president of the country since 2014.
He has cooled the country’s relationship with the United States and NATO, as well as moved to turn what had long been a secular state into an Islamist society.
In 2020, Erdoğan orchestrated the conversion of the historic Hagia Sophia — originally built in the 6th century as one of the world’s most important Christian churches — from the museum it had been since 1934 back into a mosque.
The move was widely viewed as an aggressive statement against the Western world.
In the United States, President Joe Biden issued a Twitter statement congratulating Erdogan on his win on Sunday, saying the leaders would “work together as NATO Allies on bilateral issues and shared global challenges.”
Congratulations to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Türkiye on his re-election.
I look forward to continuing to work together as NATO Allies on bilateral issues and shared global challenges.
— President Biden (@POTUS) May 28, 2023
Erdoğan, leader of the Justice and Development Party, defeated secular opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu with 52.14 percent of the vote to 47.86 percent, according to NPR. It was the biggest challenge of Erdogan’s political career, NPR reported.
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