The youngest and oldest candidates in the local elections have been identified! There is a 72-year age gap between them...

Turkey will head to the polls for local elections on March 31, 2024.

In the elections where approximately 61 million voters will cast their ballots, 34 political parties will compete, and more than 206 thousand ballot boxes will be set up across the country.

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

Political parties submitted their candidate lists for metropolitan mayoralties, provincial, district, and town mayoralties, as well as provincial general assembly and municipal council memberships to the Supreme Election Council (YSK) by February 20, and independent candidates also submitted their applications during this period.

THE YOUNGEST AND OLDEST CANDIDATES HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED

In the election where thousands of candidates are competing, the profiles of the oldest and youngest candidates among all those running were determined; the youngest and oldest candidates emerged from among the provincial general assembly membership candidates.

THE YOUNGEST METROPOLITAN CANDIDATE IS FROM THE TKP

Accordingly, among the metropolitan mayoral candidates, the youngest is 21 and the oldest is 85. 21-year-old Rojda Dolgun, who will run in the election in Aydın on behalf of the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP), holds the title of the youngest candidate, while 85-year-old Selahattin Cizrelioğlu, who will compete as an independent from Konya, holds the title of the oldest.

81-year-old Ahmet Türk, the DEM Party's candidate for Mardin Metropolitan Municipality, was also recorded as the oldest candidate from a party.

THE YOUNGEST CANDIDATE IS FROM THE BTP

Among the district mayoral candidates, 18-year-old Baran Birkaç, running in the Kadirli district of Osmaniye on behalf of the Independent Turkey Party (BTP), is the youngest, while 86-year-old Ekrem Çelik, also a BTP candidate in the Aydıntepe district of Bayburt, holds the title of the oldest.

On the list of provincial general assembly membership candidates, 18-year-old Bora Çelik, nominated from the IYI Party lists in the Hanönü district of Kastamonu, was recorded as the youngest, and 87-year-old İsmail Şahin from the Democratic Left Party (DSP) in the Kofçaz district of Kırklareli was recorded as the oldest candidate.

THE OLDEST CANDIDATE IS 90 YEARS OLD

The youngest and oldest names among the district municipal council member candidates were also determined. Accordingly, 18-year-old Elif Nur Batur from the New Welfare Party (Yeniden Refah Partisi), competing in the Küçükçekmece district of Istanbul, is the youngest district municipal council member candidate, while the oldest is 90-year-old Ali Kalınca, the AKP's municipal council member candidate for the Kargı district of Çorum.

Thus, among all candidates, the youngest in the elections was registered as 18-year-old Elif Nur Batur, a district municipal council member candidate for the New Welfare Party, by a margin of days, and the oldest was registered as 90-year-old Ali Kalınca, an AK Party district municipal council member candidate, with a 72-year age gap.

The youngest candidates consist of students, while the oldest candidates consist of business people, politicians, tradespeople, workers, and retirees.

News Source: AA