2020 Northern Cypriot presidential election

An Akıncı campaign poster in Kyrenia. The slogan reads "The answer is determination".

Akıncı, the incumbent president, sought re-election as an independent. He announced his candidacy and set out his vision for a second term on 5 February 2020 at a rally in Nicosia titled "Trust and Determination Evening". He defended the federal model for the resolution of the Cyprus dispute as the only feasible and reasonable option, declaring "We do not want to be a minority amongst Greek Cypriots, nor do we want to be a sub-administration dependent on Turkey."[9] His re-election bid was shaped around the slogan "The Answer is Akıncı" (Turkish: Cevap Akıncı), and the themes promoted in the campaign included "trust", "determination", "sincerity" and "responsibility", all associated with Akıncı.[10]

The left-wing Communal Democracy Party (TDP) chairman Cemal Özyiğit declared his party's support for Akıncı's re-election on 23 October 2019, when Akıncı was yet to announce his candidacy.[11] Other parties to declare support for Akıncı in the first round were the extraparliamentary Communal Liberation Party New Forces,[12] Independence Path,[13] United Cyprus Party[14] and Left Movement.[15] The Republican Turkish Party declared its support for Akıncı in the second round,[16] while the New Cyprus Party called on voters not to vote for Ersin Tatar.[17]

A banner of Ersin Tatar in Kyrenia, with the banner reading "We are walking to a new future".

Ersin Tatar, leader of the right-wing National Unity Party (UBP) and Prime Minister, put forward his candidacy representing the UBP on 18 January 2020. He set out his vision for the Presidency on 16 September 2020, in an event in Nicosia titled "We are walking to a new future". Whilst Tatar has said that he would be willing to negotiate with Greek Cypriots for a resolution of the Cyprus dispute, he advocated a two-state solution, involving separate Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot states in the European Union as his preferential model. He based this on his position that, having been explored as an option 1977, he believed the federal model for Cyprus to have been exhausted. A key campaign promise was to fully reopen the ghost town of Varosha, with the land being used by its original inhabitants under Turkish Cypriot sovereignty. He also held that Akıncı had been too belligerent with regards to the relationship with Turkey, and he said that he would undo the "damage" in the Turkey-Northern Cyprus relations brought upon by Akıncı.[10][18][19]

Tatar's central campaign slogan was "We are walking to a new future" (Turkish: Yeni bir geleceğe yürüyoruz), with an emphasis in his campaign on the message "Enough is enough! We will not lose another five years."[10]

Political parties to declare support for Tatar in the second round were the Democratic Party[20] the Rebirth Party[20] and extraparliamentary the Nationalist Democracy Party.[21]

Tufan Erhürman banners in front of CTP headquarters in Nicosia

Tufan Erhürman, head of the left-wing Republican Turkish Party (CTP), Leader of the Main Opposition and former Prime Minister, put forward his candidacy as the representative of his party on 17 December 2019, in an expanded party meeting in Nicosia.[22] A proponent of the federal solution, Erhürman initially set out a "three-piece" vision for the Presidency, with the three pieces consisting of a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus dispute, a proactive foreign policy and a self-sustaining economy. He promised to campaign proactively against the embargo against Northern Cyprus on fields such as trade and sports, whilst still striving for a "result-oriented" process to solve the Cyprus dispute. Whilst the President of Northern Cyprus has often left the major executive functions to the office of the Prime Minister, Erhürman promised a more active role for the Presidency in internal politics, foreseeing the Presidency as a stabiliser and a "bridge" between the short-lasting, volatile governments of Northern Cyprus.[23]

Erhürman emphasised that he would place relations with Turkey, the European Union and Greek Cypriots "on the correct footing", with a particular emphasis on Turkish Cypriot "will" and self-sufficiency. He promoted "dialogue" as a basis for relations with Turkey, saying that he would act "responsibly, not problematically".[24]

Erhürman's campaign slogan was "The correct one is Tufan Erhürman" (Turkish: Doğrusu Tufan Erhürman), with a particular messaging focus on "all-round leadership".[10]

Kudret Özersay, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign of Affairs, resigned from his position as head of the People's Party (HP) to run as an independent, supported by the HP.[25] Özersay's campaign emphasised his previous experience as Chief Negotiator and a scholar of international law, and used the slogan "This is his job" (Turkish: Bu, onun işi, with a double meaning, also meaning "he can get this done").[10] Özersay ran on a platform advocating that there were alternatives to a federal solution, proposing a model of "partnership based on collaboration" instead. Another key campaign promise was to reopen Varosha, but only after "informing the international community correctly" about the nature of the reopening.[26]

Mustafa Akıncı made multiple statements over the course of the campaign that the government of Turkey was actively interfering in the elections against him. He stated on 1 October that members of the Turkish parliament of the ruling Justice and Development Party and Nationalist Movement Party were touring villages in Northern Cyprus, telling people not to vote for Akıncı, and that he had been receiving insults and threats from Turkish "sources".[27] The Turkish embassy in Nicosia released a statement condemning "the mentality that considered every Turkish team on the island an interference in the elections" and said that it was unacceptable that "Turkey was being turned into campaign material".[28]

On 9 October, Akıncı stated that he had been threatened by Turkish authorities early in his campaign,[29] with a "person related to intelligence activity in Cyprus" telling his Chief of Staff that it would be "better for Akıncı himself, his family and the nation" if he withdrew from the election. He also revealed that his, his Chief of Staff's and his campaign team's emails had been hacked into.[30] The Turkish embassy in Nicosia categorically denied that Akıncı had been threatened.[31] Tatar said that it was unacceptable for a President to make such statements about Turkey.[32]

On 5 October, Özgür Gazete, an online newspaper in Northern Cyprus, published photos of Ersin Tatar meeting advisors of the Turkish Vice-president Fuat Oktay in a hotel in Kyrenia, reporting that the meetings had been taking place daily with Tatar briefing a Turkish ruling party campaign team about campaign developments and receiving strategic directives.[33][34] Tatar released a statement in response, claiming that "foreign intelligence agencies had been secretly photographing technical teams from Turkey and serving them to websites set up specifically to manipulate the election". He claimed that the photos were a violation of his right to privacy, and that the state would "take legal action against those who committed against the State and the nation".[35] Tatar's statement was condemned by the CTP, the TDP and various civil society organisations as an assault on the freedom of the press.[36][37]

Various pro-government Turkish newspapers also ran headlines attacking Akıncı in the run-up to the election.[38]

On 6 October 2020, with five days to go before the election, Ersin Tatar flew to Ankara upon the special invitation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. This was the date for the scheduled reopening of the Northern Cyprus Water Supply Project after months of repairs, but the High Electoral Board had banned any political speeches at the reopening ceremony in Cyprus. The ceremony took place nonetheless, with Tatar and Erdoğan taking part virtually via videoconferencing from a live press conference in Ankara.

During the ceremony, Tatar announced that the ghost town of Varosha, which had been sealed off during the 1974 conflict after the flight of its Greek Cypriot population, would be partially reopened on 8 October. This would involve the reopening of a couple of avenues and the beach for the public to visit. Erdoğan stated his support for the move and said that the infrastructure work required would be completed swiftly.[39]

The move met with condemnation from Josep Borrell, the foreign policy chief of the European Union, and expressions of concern from the United Nations Security Council and Russia. The UN Security Council presidential statement urged the reversal of the decision and that the UN Security Council decisions regarding Varosha be respected.[40][41]

This move was seen as a pre-election political manoeuvre by other political figures in Northern Cyprus.[42] Akıncı said that the developments were "a black stain on Turkish Cypriot democracy", saying that they constituted "yet another development in the interference with our elections just to confer advantage to one candidate". He also called using the reopening of Varosha as campaign material a "grave mistake".[43]

Kudret Özersay, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and member of the People's Party, the junior partner in the ruling coalition, said that he had no prior knowledge of the reopening, and that without a Council of Ministers decision, this could not possibly be a real reopening of Varosha.[44] The Party Assembly of the People's Party decided to withdraw from the coalition, leading to a collapse of the government, citing Ersin Tatar's "bypassing" of his coalition partners and "using Varosha as an election ploy" as the reason.[45]