Erdogan swaps 39 governors before elections

Governors for 39 provinces have been swapped on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s orders. 13 of the provinces are metropolitan municipalities.

Erdogan’s decree was published in the Official Gazette. The decree appoints new governors in 39 provinces while removing 21 others from office.

13 of the 39 provinces with newly appointed governors have metropolitan municipality status. The decree came before the 2019 local elections.

Governors of 21 provinces were appointed as Chief Civil Inspectors, while one female governor was appointed to the Interior Ministry, and one new female governor was appointed.

The decree appointed Istanbul Governor Vasip Sahin to Ankara. Ankara Governor Ercan Topaca was appointed as a Chief Civil Inspector and Antep Governor Ali Yerlikaya was appointed as the Governor of Istanbul.