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The party of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lost control of the capital, Ankara, in the local elections, due to his 16-year reign.
The main opposition is also slightly ahead in the mayor's contest in Istanbul, according to figures released by the official Anadolu news agency.
But the president's AKP party is contesting the result in both cities.
Municipal elections were held Sunday across the country and an AKP-led alliance garnered more than 51 percent of the vote.
The elections, considered a verdict on Erdogan's regime, took place during a period of economic slowdown.
The currency, the lira, has recently lost value and the economy has gone into recession during the last three months of 2018.
What does the ruling party say?
The AKP – or Justice and Development Party – alleges "invalid votes and irregularities in most of the 12 158 polling stations in Ankara".
Its secretary general, Fatih Sahin, said on Twitter: "We will use our legal rights to the fullest, and we will not allow the will of our citizens to be changed in Ankara."
The AKP says it will also dispute the outcome in Istanbul – the largest city – and in the eastern province of Igdir.
In a speech on Sunday, Erdogan referred to the results of the 2023 national elections: "We have a long time ahead of us to carry out economic reforms without compromising the rules of the market economy.
"If there are gaps, it is our duty to correct them," he said.
what are the results?
More than 57 million people in the country have registered to vote for mayors and councilors. The participation rate was high at just under 85%.
Mansur Yavas, candidate of the Republican People's Party (CHP), won the victory in Ankara, officials said. With almost all the votes counted, he was at nearly 51% and Mehmet Ozhaseki of the AKP had won the support of just over 47%.
The PSC and the AKP claim their victory in Istanbul, which has been in the hands of parties linked to Erdogan since 1994, the year of his election to the town hall of the city.
The electoral commission said that Ekrem Imamoglu of the CHP led less than 0.5%, but the results of more than 80 ballot boxes were disputed. The results obtained by Anadolu further reduce the margin to less than 0.25%.
CHP mayoral candidate for Istanbul Ekrem Imamoglu won by 28,000 votes
The AKP had declared that its candidate, former Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, was ahead of 4,000 votes. He conceded later that his opponent had a narrow lead, only for the AKP to claim victory again.
The country's third largest city, Izmir, has joined the CHP.
"Citizens voted in favor of democracy, they chose democracy," said CHP chief Kemal Kilicdaroglu.
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