Turkey's ruling AKP to seek coalition with other parties

Turkish Parliament convenes to vote on a motion in Ankara, Turkey, in this October 2, 2014 file photo[Photo/Agencies]

ANKARA -- Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) will seek to form a coalition government with opposition parties, Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said in Ankara on Monday.

Kurtulmus made the remarks after initial results show that the ruling party had lost its majority in parliament in Sunday's elections.

According to an unofficial count of about 100 percent of the votes, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's ruling AKP is seen as winning 258 seats, down from 326 it won in 2011, in the 550-seat parliament. The AKP currently holds 311 seats in parliament.

As the AKP is 18 seats shy of the 276 seats required to form a single-party government, a coalition government looks likely. Or Turkey might have a minority government that will take the country to an early election in a short period of time.

"Calling an early election is a distant possibility," Kurtulmus told reporters before attending an AKP meeting to evaluate election results.

Bulent Arinc, another deputy prime minister who serves as government spokesman, also signaled the AKP's readiness to form a coalition government.