Your Tuesday Briefing: A Runoff in Turkey

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President Recep Tayyip Erdogan failed to secure victory in the first round of Turkey’s presidential election and will now face a runoff on May 28. However, he looks set to win another five-year term.

Preliminary results showed that Erdogan won 49.5 percent of the vote on Sunday, ahead of his main challenger, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, who got 44.9 percent. Right-wing supporters of the third candidate, Sinan Ogan, who lost the race, are more likely to vote for Erdogan in the run-off, increasing his chances of winning.

Erdogan’s party and its allies also maintained a commanding majority in Parliament during elections for the seat, which were also held on Sunday. That probably increases Erdogan’s ability to be re-elected.

But the fact that Erdogan could not win a majority – even after he tilted the playing field to his advantage by using state resources for campaigning and relying on sympathetic media – shows that some voters are frustrated with the financial management and consolidation of power.

lost ground: Preliminary results show that, compared to the 2018 presidential election, almost all parts of the country moved against Erdogan. Some of the sharpest rebuke came from the provinces surrounding Turkey’s two largest cities, Istanbul and Ankara.

Analysis: Experts described the result as the latest example of Erdogan’s survival skills.

Thailand’s two opposition parties said yesterday they would work together to form a coalition government after winning a clear majority in general elections over the weekend. But it remains unclear whether the junta will hand over power so easily.

Pita Limjaroenrat, chairman of the Move Forward Party, is leading efforts to build a coalition and potentially become prime minister. He said he was not concerned about opposition from the military-appointed Senate, which could still block his candidacy. “I don’t think the Thai people will allow that to happen,” he said.

But if history is any indicator, the military won’t be letting go of power anytime soon. Generals rewrote the Constitution in 2017 to stack the Senate with allies and ensure that the military will determine the next prime minister. Analysts say efforts to block Pita from leading the country will lead to protests.

Quote: “Now, many people have Pita as the new prime minister in their minds,” said an expert. “If Pita cannot become prime minister, and Move Forward cannot form a government, it will break the hearts of the people. And it will be very bad.

In March, a group of gunmen attacked a remote mine in the Central African Republic and killed nine Chinese workers there. The attack, and others, have raised questions about China’s ability to protect its citizens abroad.

The CAR government blamed rebel groups for the attack; the rebels blamed Wagner’s Russian mercenary group, who in turn blamed the rebels. Neither party presented evidence. Only four government soldiers were protecting the site, although more than a dozen were supposed to be there, diplomats said. Four people survived.

Murkiness has underscored the growing security challenges facing Beijing as Chinese companies expand. Often, they do business in the middle of conflict zones with limited protection. Chinese security often relies on local military personnel, mercenaries and private companies to protect Chinese workers.

Quote: “China is on thin ice because they are entering some of the most unregulated places in the world and supercharging conflicts,” said a Chinese development finance expert. “And every time there is an attack, the Chinese get angry and force China to reconsider this light-touch approach. “

Before becoming the mayor of Kathmandu, Balendra Shah was a rap star pursuing an engineering degree. Her electoral success has inspired a wave of young candidates in Nepal to take on a political class perceived as corrupt and incompetent, and dominated by men in their late 60s and 70s who have been in office for decades.

For cinephiles, there is no pilgrimage more sacred than the Cannes Film Festival, which begins today.

This is the place where great auteurs have been canonized, like Martin Scorsese, who returns this year with a new feature, “Killer of the Flower Moon,” and Wes Anderson, who will present the ensemble comedy “Asteroid City.” It was the most anticipated premiere of the festival.

Opening the festival is the period drama “Jeanne du Barry,” starring Johnny Depp as King Louis XV of France. But movies aren’t the only thing to watch during Cannes. The film festival will also make waves on the red carpet.

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