Pro-Erdogan candidate voted Turkey`s new parliament speaker

AFP, Ankara :The defence minister from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party was elected parliament speaker Wednesday in a vote seen as a key barometer of the country’s politics after the party lost its majority in June elections.Ismet Yilmaz was elected speaker in the fourth round of voting with support from 258 deputies in the 550-seat parliament dominated by Justice and Development Party (AKP).Yilmaz, a relatively low-profile candidate, was running against Deniz Baykal, veteran former leader of the main opposition CHP Republican People’s Party, who won 182 votes in the final round of voting.The Nationalist Movement Party’s (MHP) candidate Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu and pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party’s (HDP) candidate Dengir Mir Firat were eliminated in the third round of voting.The AKP has 258 seats in the parliament, CHP 132, and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP) 80 apiece.Even though AKP are still by far the largest party, the June 7 election was a blow not only to its authority but also to Erdogan, who had been hoping the new parliament would agree on a new constitution to increase his powers.