Turkey faces political uncertainty following news that Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is to announce a party congress on Thursday, effectively signifying his resignation, and sending shockwaves through the country. According to the Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey is not expected to hold a snap election after the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) elects a new leader and will continue until the current government's mandate expires in 2019, according to the presidential adviser Cemil Ertem said. Furthermore, Davutoglu will hold a crucial press meeting on Thursday following an extraordinary Central Executive Board (MYK) meeting that came after the 1-1/2 hours meeting between Davutoglu and President Tayyip Erdogan that followed weeks of increasingly public tension between the two men. Reports and sources say the party will hold a congress soon, and as Hurriyet reports Davutoglu would not run for a seat. The AKP official said the congress would be held as soon as May 21 and no later than June 6, the first day of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, and that Erdogan was adamant there should be no vacuum of power at the head of government. According to Reuters, three sources close to the presidency said possible successors included government spokesman Numan Kurtulmus and Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag. Transport Minister Binali Yildirim and Energy Minister Berat Albayrak, Erdogan's son-in-law, had also been touted as possible names, they said. Erdogan's rift with Davutoglu The relations were reportedly tense between the two leaders amid the latest rumours suggesting that Davutoglu will resign after saying on May 3 that he would not hesitate to "walk away from any job position." Erdogan wants an executive presidency in Turkey to replace the current parliamentary system, a plan for which Davutoglu has offered only lukewarm support. His departure is likely to pave the way for a successor more willing to back Erdogan's ambition of changing the constitution and strengthening the presidency, a move opponents say will herald growing authoritarianism. "Davutoglu's likely early exit as party leader and PM constitutes another episode that show that Erdogan's dominance over the AKP and the executive is absolute and unchallenged," said Wolfango Piccoli, head of research at Teneo Intelligence. The leader of the AKP, which has governed Turkey since 2002, also serves as prime minister. Davutoglu's likely departure looms as Turkey faces mounting security challenges, with a Kurdish insurgency in its southeast and the spillover of the war in Syria on its southern border. The two leaders have appeared at odds over the deal with the EU to stem the flow of illegal migrants from Turkish shores to the Greek islands, in return for which Ankara has been promised accelerated EU accession talks, visa liberalisation and financial aid. The deal has been Davutoglu's project, and its future may be less certain after his departure. However, Erdogan, frequently critical of the EU, has at times appeared to belittle Davutoglu's progress, most notably efforts to win visa-free travel to Europe by June, the main prize in the eyes of many Turks.Furthermore, US is also counting on Ankara's support in fighting Islamic State in Syria and Iraq. Turkish Lira sold-off Turkish lira slides to two-month low as Davutoglu steps down according to Financial Times. The Turkish lira weakened more than 4 per cent to 2.976 to the dollar, its weakest since the end of February, as investors balked at the prospect of more uncertainty. "Markets have taken significant discomfort from the blurry political atmosphere," said Sertan Kargin, chief economist at Istanbul-based Global Securities. "Turkish politics are now sailing into ‘uncharted waters' at least for the next couple of months." The dollar was up 3.9% Wednesday afternoon at 2.9589 lira, its highest level since late February. The lira's decline follows drops in several other emerging-market currencies, reflecting concerns about global growth and demand for raw materials, a key export of many developing countries. The dollar has gained nearly 5% against the South African rand since May 2, while also strengthening against the Brazilian real, Russian ruble and Mexican peso.
