Two killed in fight outside polling station in Turkey

Two people died in a fight Sunday outside a polling station in Turkey’s historic referendum on whether to grant sweeping powers to the president’s office.

Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency said a quarrel between two families in the southeastern province of Diyarbakir turned deadly in a village school’s garden where people were casting their votes.

The agency said the reasons for the fight were unknown. The private Dogan news agency reported it was caused by “differences in political opinion.”

One person remained hospitalized Sunday afternoon, and two others were detained in the incident.

More than 55 million people are registered to vote in Sunday’s historic referendum. Voters are deciding whether to approve constitutional amendments that would replace the parliamentary system with a presidential one, scrapping the office of the prime minister and handing its powers to the president.

Observers from the 57-nation Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe are monitoring the voting process in the Turkish capital.

Tana de Zulueta, the head of the OSCE observation mission, said the group has been in the country since March 17 “to assess the campaign including the media environment, the legal framework, the conduct of the campaign for its conformity with international standards to which Turkey is party.”

She said observers visited polling stations in 12 locations to complete the referendum assessment mission.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sharply criticized OSCE on Friday, saying, “Who are you? First know your place. You cannot meddle in what happens.”

The group is expected to hold a news conference Monday on its preliminary findings and conclusions regarding the referendum process.

Several politicians have already cast their vote.

Erdogan cast his ballot in Istanbul, describing the referendum as “not an ordinary vote.”

Speaking to reporters after voting, Erdogan said: “We have held referendums before. But this referendum is now about a new administrative system for the Republic of Turkey, it’s a choice for change and transformation.

“We need to make a decision that is beyond the ordinary,” he said, adding that he hoped the nation would make the “expected” decision.

“I believe in my nation’s democratic common sense,” he said.

Bodyguards with automatic weapons stood guard outside the polling station as the president and his wife, Emine Erdogan, cast their ballots. The couple were accompanied by two of their grandchildren.

Scores gathered to greet the president and snap pictures outside the polling station.

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim cast his vote in the western province of Izmir, saying the outcome of the referendum is for the nation to decide.

Speaking to reporters outside the polling station after casting his vote, he said: “Whatever the result is, we will hold it in high esteem. The decision of our nation is the most beautiful decision.”

The crowd in the polling station chanted, “Turkey is proud of you.”

Yildirim along with Erdogan led the campaign for a “yes” vote in the months leading up to the referendum.

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu lambasted foreign countries for attempting to influence the referendum as he cast his vote in the southern province of Antalya.

Cavusoglu said some “from abroad” “tried to tell the Turkish nation what to do. They took sides but today the decision belongs to our nation.”

He did not specify who he was referring to, but tensions have been high between Turkey and some European countries, particularly Germany and the Netherlands. Erdogan branded both countries Nazis for not allowing Turkish ministers to campaign for a “yes” vote there.

The Netherlands withdrew Cavusoglu’s landing permission in March, barring him from addressing expatriate Turks there. Turkey said it would impose sanctions and halted high-level political discussions.

Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the leader of Turkey’s main opposition party and campaigner for a “no” vote in the referendum on constitutional amendments, has cast his ballot in the capital Ankara.

“We are voting for Turkey’s fate today,” Kilicdaroglu said, adding: “we hope the results will be good and together we can have the opportunity to discuss Turkey’s other fundamental problems.”

Kilicdaroglu, who leads the Republican People’s Party, has been a vocal critic of the proposed constitutional amendments, arguing that increased presidential powers would lead to “one-man rule” in Turkey.