Elections in Northern Cyprus are organized to elect governments, presidents and representatives of local administrative bodies in

Northern Cyprus Northern Cyprus ( tr, Kuzey Kıbrıs), officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC; tr, Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti, ''KKTC''), is a '' de facto'' state that comprises the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus. Rec ...

, known as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Electoral system

The presidency, which is served in five-year terms, was instituted with TRNC's first presidential election in 1985 and continued with the elections of 1990, 1995, 2000 and 2005,2010 with the next election scheduled for April 2015. The legislature, Cumhuriyet Meclisi ( Assembly of the Republic of Northern Cyprus), has 50 members, elected for a five-year term by mitigated

proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to a type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to geographical (e.g. states, regions) and political divis ...

. The territory has a

multi-party In political science, a multi-party system is a political system in which multiple political parties across the political spectrum run for national elections, and all have the capacity to gain control of government offices, separately or in coa ...

system, with two or three strong

parties A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...

and another party which is also electorally successful. In the presidential election, a candidate must obtain at least 50% of the votes in order to secure a first-ballot victory. Upon failing to do so, the two top candidates compete in a

runoff election The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resu ...

, with the winner assuming the presidency. The mitigated proportional representation system in use for legislative elections obligates each party to cross the 5% of the total vote

election threshold The electoral threshold, or election threshold, is the minimum share of the primary vote that a candidate or political party requires to achieve before they become entitled to representation or additional seats in a legislature. This limit can ...

in order to be seated in the 50-member parliament, which is chosen from five

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

Lefkoşa Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaori ...

Gazimağusa Famagusta ( , ; el, Αμμόχωστος, Ammóchostos, ; tr, Gazimağusa or ) is a city on the east coast of Cyprus. It is located east of Nicosia and possesses the deepest harbour of the island. During the Middle Ages (especially under th ...

, Girne, Güzelyurt and İskele. In the parliamentary elections, voters choose individual candidates with two options in the manner of voting: a party-line vote which, in effect, means a vote for each candidate from that party in that election district or, alternatively, the voter may choose different MP candidates from various parties. In this type of mixed voting, the voter may not choose more than the number of MPs from that district. Residents of Northern Cyprus are eligible to stand for election and vote in the national elections of the Republic of Cyprus, but not able to run for presidencyNicos Trimikliniotis, Corina Demetriou
Evaluating the Anti-Discrimination Law in the Republic of Cyprus: A Critical Reflection
(Peace Research Institute) Retrieved 2010-05-07. (the Constitution states that a Turkish-Cypriot should be vice-president of the Republic). Turkish Cypriot communal representation in the Republic of Cyprus government ''de facto'' ended in 1963. Until 2004, the case of Ibrahim Aziz in the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that ...

, Turkish Cypriots could not vote in the Republic of Cyprus.Aziz v. Cyprus
, European Court of Human Rights, Netherlands Institute of Human Rights, Retrieved 2011-05-17.
Cyprus News Agency, Retrieved 2011-05-17.

Latest elections

2020 Northern Cypriot presidential election

2022 Northern Cypriot parliamentary election

Presidential elections

Parliamentary elections

In 2009 President Mehmet Ali Talat claimed that in 1990 and 1998 Turkish government officials along with other influential powers from Turkey interfered with the Parliamentary Elections.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elections in Northern Cyprus Politics of Northern Cyprus