Turkish President Erdogan sets early elections despite criticism over earthquake response
Turkish President Erdogan has set early parliamentary and presidential elections for May 14, a month earlier than planned, despite criticism over his government's response to the recent earthquake that killed over 46,000 people in Turkey and nearly 6,000 people in northern Syria. The elections could be the most significant in the country's modern history by determining if Turkey will take a more democratic path or continue on Erdogan's increasingly authoritarian course. The move puts added pressure on lawyers who are trying to preserve evidence from the rubble of the earthquake to prove it didn't need to claim so many lives. Erdogan's critics have accused him of failing to prepare the earthquake-prone country for a disaster in waiting.