BREAKING NEWS

Turkey's Erdogan asks PM Davutoglu to form new government

ANKARA - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday gave Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu the mandate to form a new government after a snap election just over three weeks ago saw the ruling AK Party win back its majority in parliament.
Davutoglu met Erdogan at the presidential palace, according to a statement from the presidency. Davutoglu is expected to name his ministers on Wednesday or Thursday, with the new cabinet likely to be packed with Erdogan loyalists. The prime minister is, however, expected to keep control over the closely watched economic team.
The AKP's decisive victory on Nov. 1 saw them win nearly 50 percent of the vote just five months after an election in which they lost their parliamentary majority for the first time in more than a decade.
The scale of their resurgence surprised commentators and came despite divisions within the party over economic management and Erdogan's desire for constitutional changes ushering in a presidential system.