ISTANBUL -- The opposition's surprise landslide win in Turkish local elections on Sunday has given President Recep Tayyip Erdogan four years to sort out the economy or face his party losing power in the next presidential and parliamentary races.
The main opposition, the center-left, secular Republican People's Party (CHP), not only kept out Erdogan's religiously conservative Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Istanbul and Ankara but also won mayoral seats in other key cities. The CHP garnered the highest share of votes nationwide for the first time since 1977, pointing to the grueling task ahead for the ruling party in the 2028 elections.

