Turkey's parliament officially halted on Wednesday a presidential election process that triggered a major political crisis and forced the Islamist-rooted government to call early national polls. The parliament accepted Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul's petition to withdraw from the presidential contest, in which he had been the sole candidate. Gul's withdrawal became inevitable after he failed to win enough backing from the assembly in two rounds of voting. "As there is no presidential candidate, there is no possibility of electing a president. For this reason, the voting has been cancelled," parliament's deputy speaker Nevzat Pakdil told the chamber in televised remarks.A new parliament will now choose a president after the July 22 general election. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, who had been due to retire on May 16, will stay on as interim head of state until his successor can be chosen. Turkey's parliament gave initial approval on Monday to a major constitutional amendment to make the presidency a popularly elected post.
The ruling AK Party moved the reforms after secularist opposition parties boycotted a parliamentary vote and prevented Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul becoming president. The secularist establishment fears AK seeks the presidency to press a secret Islamist agenda, a charge the government denies.