Turkish candidate Kilicdaroglu hardens stance before runoff against Erdogan

By SUZAN FRASER
Associated Press

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s main challenger has adopted a more nationalist and hard-line stance before a presidential runoff. Kemal Kilicdaroglu on Thursday vowed to send back millions of refugees if he is elected. He also rejected any possibility of negotiating for peace with Kurdish militants. Voters in Turkey will head back to the polls on May 28. Neither Erdogan nor Kilicdaroglu won more than 50% of the votes in Sunday’s first round. The election will decide whether the country remains under the increasingly authoritarian Erdogan or embarks on a more democratic course. The soft-mannered Kilicdaroglu had led a positive and uniting campaign. But he has now hardened his rhetoric to appeal to nationalist voters.