The possibility to conduct a campaign in Europe, in view of the upcoming August presidential elections, in which he will likely be a candidate, is considered by Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Turkey’s Prime Minister is “aiming” at expatriate Turkish voters, as was stated by his coworkers.

The presidential elections, which will be held for the first time through total voting, will also for the first time be open to estimated 2.6 million Turks of voting age, living abroad, of whom 1.5 million reside in Germany.

Before the new law was passed in 2012, at the initiative of the islamic-conservative government,  only 5% to 7% of voters were voting, according to official numbers, and voting was carried out at customs of Turkish borders.

In the context of his election tour, it was explained that Erdogan wants to visit numerous cities of Europe where a substantial Turkish community resides, mainly in Cologne.

The head of the Turkish government wants to visit France and the Netherlands afterwards, two countries that are also host to important Turkish communities.