The outpouring of joy on the streets of Istanbul and other cities across Turkey on Sunday evening was spontaneous as much as it was unexpected. Glued to their TV screens across the country of 84 million, voters remained sceptical as the first results already appeared to show a decisive victory for the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), particularly across the country’s largest and most populated cities, including Istanbul, the capital Ankara, and Izmir. Fresh from a defeat in the 2023 general elections last May, despite great hopes and a broad opposition alliance, those who had c…