Turkish assembly passes polemic bill to boost Erdogan powers
ANKARA, Turkey - Turkey's parliament has approved a contentious constitutional reform package, paving the way for a referendum on a presidential system that would greatly expand the powers of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's office.
In an all-night session that ended early Saturday, lawmakers voted in favor of a set of amendments presented by the ruling party, founded by Erdoğan. The reform bill cleared the minimum threshold necessary to put the measures to a national referendum for final approval.
The vote took place with 488 lawmakers out of the 550-seat assembly in attendance. A total of 339 parliamentarians voted yes, 142 no, five cast empty ballots and two were ruled out as invalid.
