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Turkish centre-right opposition parties merge |
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Written by Reuters
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Sunday, 06 May 2007 06:25 |
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Two Turkish centre-right parties merged today, a move which could strengthen opposition against the ruling AK Party in July's general election.
The centre-right ANAP and True Path parties, which have 20 and four seats, respectively, in the 550-seat parliament, announced their merger at a joint news conference and said their new name would be the Democrat Party.
The AK Party called early national elections this week amid a political crisis pitting Turkey's Islamist-rooted government against the powerful secular elite, which includes the military.
Tension has risen after a warning from the army about the ruling party's choice of candidate for president and a decision by the Constitutional Court to annul the first round of parliamentary voting for president.
The general election is scheduled for July 22, brought forward from November 4.
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