Turkey’s president vetoes law to elect his successor by public vote

[Julio_Iglesias]

Sezer had earlier said he believed the constitutional amendment had not been sufficiently debated and had been rushed through the parliament.



Turkey’s President Ahmet Necdet Sezer has vetoed an amendment to the country’s constitution that would have paved the way for future heads of state to be elected by popular vote, rather than by an election within the parliament.


President Sezer vetoed the constitutional amendment Friday afternoon, two weeks after the legislation was approved by the parliament and forwarded to him for ratification.

The ruling Justice and Development Party pushed legislation through the parliament earlier this month to allow for the head of state to be elected by a popular vote after a boycott by opposition parties meant that the required quorum of 367 deputies could not be mustered