ANKARA (Reuters) - Initial results in Turkey's local elections suggested a strong showing for Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's ruling party on Sunday, an outcome likely to bolster his authority in battling "traitors" within the state he accuses of seeking to topple him.
With around half of the votes counted, results broadcast on Turkish television put Erdogan's Islamist-rooted AK Party ahead with 44-46 percent of the vote. The main opposition CHP, the party of the modern secular republic's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, captured around 23-28 percent.