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| Registered | 1,463 delegates | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Turnout | 1,363 (93.16%) | ||||||||||||||||||
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The3rd Justice and Development Party Ordinary Congress was a party convention of the governing TurkishJustice and Development Party (AK Party) that took place on 3 October 2009.
The AK Party's founding party leaderRecep Tayyip Erdoğan stood as the only candidate for the party leadership, with 1,463 registered delegates voting in the election. Erdoğan was re-elected as leader with 1,362 votes. The congress was held seven months after the AK Party emerged as the first party in the29 March 2009 local elections.
The congress was held in theASKI Sport Hall in the capital city ofAnkara. The date of 3 October 2009 was set due to the AKP's usual timetable of holding its conventions in theAutumn every three years. The previous ordinary congress took place in 2006.
The agenda widely centred on the AKP's policy of 'democratisation', which aimed to win over many Kurdish supporters in the south-east of Turkey through more inclusive policies that increase said citizen's rights as a minority. The main oppositionRepublican People's Party (CHP) did not send an observer, though other smaller parties were represented at the congress. During his speech, it was observed that Erdoğan did not read out a pre-written script containing criticism of the Kurdish nationalistDemocratic Society Party (DTP).[1]
In a propaganda film featuring Erdoğan's overseas trips as Prime Minister, the crowd only applauded footage that showed US PresidentBarack Obama. Both German ChancellorAngela Merkel and the Ukrainian Prime MinisterYulia Tymoshenko sent messages of support to the congress.[2]
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recep Tayyip Erdoğan | 1,362 | 100.0 | |
Invalid/blank votes | 1 | – | |
Total | 1,363 | 100.0 | |
Number of delegates/turnout | 1,463 | 93.2 | |
| Source:NTV | |||
The following members were elected to the Central Decision Executive Board (MKYK). The number of votes they received is shown in brackets.[3]
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