Recep Tayyip Erdogan is Turkey’s President

Ankara: Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday prepared for the challenge of leading Turkey into his promised “new era” as a strongman president following his election win, as his party began to set up the transfer of power.

As premier since 2003, Erdogan has sought to modernise Turkey and take an assertive position on the global stage but is seen by opponents as an increasingly authoritarian figure with a desire to Islamise Turkish society. He is to become the country’s first ever directly elected president after Sunday’s election win, with his inauguration set for August 28. He could well serve two five-year terms, staying in power until 2024.

Attention will now turn to who becomes the next PM to take the ruling Islamic-rooted Justice and AKP into 2015 legislative elections. AKP spokesman Huseyin Celik said the party would hold an extraordinary congress on August 27, a day before the inauguration to agree a new PM to replace Erdogan.

This means that Erdogan who clearly has no desire to take even the smallest break will stay in his current post until the very last moment when he takes the presidency from incumbent Abdullah Gul.