LOC10:03
07:03 GMT
ISTANBUL, April 1 (KUNA) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan acknowledged that his party, the Justice and Development Party, did not attain the desired results in the municipal elections.
Addressing a rally of his party in Ankara, late on Sunday, the president said that regretfully, "we could not get the results we wanted in these elections ..."
But, these polls "are not the end; they are rather a transformational point .. the Turkish people have addressed their message to the politicians," he said.
According to initial results, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu has bagged 50.44 percent of the votes, according to the tally of 75.76 percent of the votes in Istanbul, a significant district in these elections.
The Justice party candidate in the Istanbul polls, Murat Kurum, bagged 40.82 percent of the votes.
Media have reported that Erdogan's party lost many districts in the municipal polls throughout Turkey.
The results of these elections signal the level of popularity of the ruling party that will be certainly determined in presidential elections, due in four years. (end)
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