Voters take note! 1 week left until local elections: What you need to know before heading to the polls!

The calendar announced by the Supreme Election Council (YSK) regarding the General Local Administration Elections to be held on March 31 is underway.

According to the calendar, the propaganda freedom that began on March 21 will end on Saturday, March 30 at 18.00, and the election bans that began on the same date will end on March 31 at 23.59.

1 MILLION 32 THOUSAND 610 YOUNG PEOPLE WILL VOTE FOR THE FIRST TIME

In the election where there are 61 million 441 thousand 882 registered voters, 1 million 32 thousand 610 young people will vote for the first time. In the elections where candidates from 34 political parties will compete, more than 206 thousand ballot boxes will be set up across the country.

In the election, 81 provincial, 973 district, and 390 town mayors, as well as 50 thousand 336 neighborhood heads (muhtars) will be determined, and elections for provincial general assembly and municipal council memberships will be held.

IS IT MANDATORY TO BRING THE VOTER INFORMATION SLIP?

Voters will be able to check where and at which ballot box they will vote on the Supreme Election Council's website, via the e-Government portal, the YSK's Voter Inquiry Mobile Application, or by calling the YSK Call Center at 444 9 975.

It will not be mandatory to bring the voter information slip that shows where the voter will cast their ballot. Voters will be able to vote with any official document containing their T.R. identity number.

34 political parties will participate in the elections. The order of the parties on the ballot paper is as follows:

AKP 1, İYİ Party 2, Left Party 3, Great Unity Party 4, Homeland Party 5, Motherland Party 6, Democratic Left Party 7, New Welfare Party 8, Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) 9, Communist Party of Turkey 10, Anatolian Union Party 11, Victory Party 12, People's Liberation Party 13, Communist Movement of Turkey 14, Independent Turkey Party 15, Future Party 16, New Turkey Party 17, CHP 18, Labor Party 19, HÜDA PAR 20, Rights and Freedoms Party 21, Ocak Party 22, Justice Unity Party 23, Democrat Party 24, Power Union Party 25, Nation Party 26, National Path Party 27, Justice Party 28, Bright Democracy Party 29, MHP 30, Workers' Party of Turkey 31, Democracy and Progress Party 32, Felicity Party 33, Patriotic Party 34.

ALL BALLOT PAPERS WILL BE PLACED IN A SINGLE ENVELOPE

Except for the exceptions listed in the law, each voter will only be able to vote at the ballot box where they are registered in the ballot box voter list.

Voters living within the borders of metropolitan municipalities in Adana, Ankara, Antalya, Aydın, Balıkesir, Bursa, Denizli, Diyarbakır, Erzurum, Eskişehir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Istanbul, Izmir, Kahramanmaraş, Kayseri, Kocaeli, Konya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mersin, Muğla, Ordu, Sakarya, Samsun, Şanlıurfa, Tekirdağ, Trabzon, and Van will vote for "metropolitan mayor," "district mayor," "municipal council membership," and "neighborhood head and council of elders."

In provinces that are not metropolitan, votes will be cast for "provincial general assembly membership," "mayor," "municipal council membership," and "neighborhood head and council of elders." In villages, votes will be cast for "provincial general assembly membership" and "neighborhood head and council of elders."

The ballot paper for the metropolitan mayoral election will be "white," the ballot paper for provincial general assembly memberships will be "orange," the ballot paper for mayoral elections will be "blue," and the ballot paper for municipal council membership will be "yellow."

Voters will place all ballot papers in a single envelope.

WHAT TIME DOES VOTING START AND END?

Due to the election being in March, the YSK has moved the voting hours one hour earlier in 32 eastern provinces, taking into account seasonal conditions and sunset times. For this reason, the start and end times for voting in Adıyaman, Ağrı, Artvin, Bingöl, Bitlis, Diyarbakır, Elazığ, Erzincan, Erzurum, Gaziantep, Giresun, Gümüşhane, Hakkari, Kars, Malatya, Kahramanmaraş, Mardin, Muş, Ordu, Rize, Siirt, Sivas, Trabzon, Tunceli, Şanlıurfa, Van, Bayburt, Batman, Şırnak, Ardahan, Iğdır, Kilis, and in penal institutions located in these provinces will be applied as 07.00-16.00. In other places outside these provinces, voting hours will be 08.00-17.00.

In metropolitan cities, the counting and tallying of ballot papers will be carried out in the order of metropolitan mayoral, mayoral, municipal council membership, and neighborhood head elections; in other provinces, it will be carried out in the order of mayoral, municipal council membership, provincial general assembly membership, and neighborhood head elections.

THE ELECTION CALENDAR IS UNDERWAY

According to the election calendar, the distribution of voter information slips to voters will be completed today. Voter information slips that cannot be distributed to voters will be returned to the relevant district election board presidencies.

The preparation of material bags containing election tools and equipment to be delivered to ballot box committee chairs by district election boards will begin tomorrow, and preparations will be finished on Tuesday, March 26.

The district election board chair will request lists of names from the chief public prosecutor's offices until 17.00 on Wednesday, March 27, of those who have been arrested, those who are written on the detained voter list but have been released, or those whose sentences have become final while in detention and have acquired the status of convict (excluding those convicted of negligent crimes).

The lists regarding detainees and those convicted of negligent crimes will be finalized on Thursday, March 28.

Training activities for election officials will also be completed on Friday, March 29.

The delivery of material bags to ballot box committee chairs by district election boards in villages, neighborhoods, and towns outside of provincial and district centers will take place on Friday, March 29.

MATERIALS WILL BE DELIVERED TO BUILDING SUPERVISORS ON VOTING DAY

In provincial and district centers, in places where a building supervisor is assigned, the delivery of material bags to building supervisors by district election board presidencies at 05.00 on the day of voting, and the building supervisors bringing the material bags they received to the ballot box areas with vehicles provided by the district election board presidencies and delivering them to the ballot box committee chairs at their duty stations in exchange for a record will be carried out.

In places where no building supervisor is assigned, district election board presidencies will deliver the material bags to the ballot box committee chairs in the ballot box area on the day of voting.

News Source: AA