More than 218,000 people voted in Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) leadership election that could shape the island’s political direction.
Published On 19 Oct 2025
Opposition candidate Tufan Erhurman has won the presidential election in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), decisively defeating incumbent Ersin Tatar, the Turkish Cypriot High Electoral Council has announced.
Erhurman, chairman of the centre-left Republican Turkish Party (CTP), secured 62.76 percent of the vote, compared with 35.81 percent for Tatar in Sunday’s election.
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“There are no losers in this election. We, the Turkish Cypriot people, have won together,” Erhurman said after the announcement.
“I will exercise my responsibilities, particularly in matters of foreign policy, in consultation with the Republic of Turkiye. Let no one worry,” he added, referring to Ankara’s longstanding interest in Northern Cyprus.
Tatar, 65, was supported by the Turkish government and advocates a two-state solution for Cyprus. Erhurman, 55, a lawyer born in Nicosia and educated at the University of Ankara, has said he intends to restart negotiations with Greek Cypriots aimed at a federal reunification of the island. He previously took part in talks under former Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat between 2008 and 2010 and served as TRNC prime minister from February 2018 to May 2019.
Northern Cyprus occupies less than a third of the Mediterranean island and is recognised only by Turkiye, which maintains more than 35,000 peacekeepers in the region.
![Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar casts his ballot at a polling station during the Turkish Cypriot leadership election in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on October 19, 2025. [Birol Bebek/AFP]](http://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/000_79AY69E-1760894840.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
Divided island
Cyprus was divided in 1974 after a coup in the south aimed at uniting the is