“Election update: French polling stations open for Turkish elections”
Voters in France and Turkey are participating in the upcoming elections on May 14. The Turkish President and the 28th Term Parliamentary elections are being held in various cities including Paris, Marseille, Strasbourg, Lyon, Nantes, and Bordeaux. The voting process began on April 27 and will end on May 9 at 9 pm. Turkish citizens from different cities are coming to Paris to cast their votes, with additional measures in place to reduce wait times.
There are 10 ballot boxes on weekdays and 15 on weekends and public holidays. This means that up to 40 people can vote at the same time in the Paris constituency over the weekend. On May 8, which is a public holiday in France, there will be 15 ballot boxes available in Paris for citizens to vote.
To ensure safety during the voting process, the police have taken various measures such as closing off certain streets to vehicle traffic and stationing officers around the consulate. In Strasbourg, where the Turkish population is dense, some areas around the consulate were closed off to traffic and car parks from May 6-9.
France is the second country with the highest number of Turkish voters abroad, with around 800,000 Turkish citizens living in the country. Of these, 397,086 are eligible to vote. Ballot papers in France will be sent to Turkey by air on May 10, and vote counting will take place on May 14.
These elections are important for both countries, and citizens are encouraged to take part in the democratic process.
