Turkey's president on Saturday tapped a senior colleague to run for Istanbul mayor in the March 2019 local elections.
Announcing the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party's candidates for greater Istanbul as well its 39 districts, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan named Binali Yildirim, the current parliament speaker and former prime minister, to seek the top mayor's post.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Saturday that Binali Yıldırım would be the ruling Justice and Development Party's candidate to lead Turkey's biggest city.
Erdoğan served as Istanbul's mayor for four years before founding the party in 2001.
Yıldırım currently is the speaker of parliament. He served as prime minister during 2016-2018 and before that as Erdoğan's transport minister.
A 2017 constitutional referendum abolished the office of prime minister and approved an executive system of government.
Yıldırım's main opponent in the March 31 mayoral election will be Ekrem Imamoğlu from the main opposition Republican People's Party.
Over 15 million people -- nearly one-fifth of Turkey's population -- lives in greater Istanbul. Local elections across Turkey are set for March 31.
Accepting the candidacy, Yıldırım vowed that if elected mayor, "I will work hard to serve Istanbul."
Yıldırım thanked Erdoğan for his trust and confidence as well as his AK Party colleagues for their support.
After Yildirim's remarks, Erdoğan wished him all success in the race.
The Turkish parliament elected Yıldırım its new speaker this July.
- LONGTIME CABİNET MINISTER, LAST PREMIER
Yildirim, 63, Turkey's last prime minister, first won a seat in parliament as a deputy for Istanbul in the fall 2002 elections, which swept the AK Party into power, and served as minister of transport and communications through 2007.
In the 2007 general elections, he was elected an AK Party deputy from the eastern Erzincan province and continued to serve as transport and communications minister.
After being elected a deputy from the Aegean province of Izmir in the 2011 general elections, Yıldırım became minister of transportation, maritime, and communications.
In 2014 he ran for mayor of Izmir but came in second, with 36 percent percent of the vote.
In November 2015, then-Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu reappointed him to his longtime Cabinet post.
During Yıldırım's tenure as transport minister, Turkey built high-speed rail lines between the capital Ankara and the central Anatolian cities of Eskişehir and Konya.
In May 2016, the ruling AK Party elected him prime minister of the Republic of Turkey as well as the party chairman.
After campaigning to shift Turkey to a presidential system of government in an April 2017 referendum, Yıldırım bowed out as prime minister before being elected Parliament speaker.
Yıldırım speaks French and English.
