ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will start his election campaign for the upcoming June early polls on Saturday with a rally in eastern Erzurum province.

Erdogan will begin his campaign after attending a meeting on Thursday to introduce his party’s election manifesto as well as lawmaker candidates, according to a source in the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party on Wednesday.

The president will continue his rallies in western provinces of Aydin and Balikesir on May 27, the source said.

Erdogan is expected to hold rallies in 30 provinces during his election campaign, the source added.

Last April, the parliament passed a bill for early elections on June 24, cementing Turkey’s move to a presidential system.

In the April 2017 referendum, Turkish voters had approved the switch from a parliamentary system to a presidential one.

Reporting by Aynur Ilkiz:Writing by Handan Kazanci