Transport and Communications Minister Binali Yildirim received 1,405 out of a total of 1,470 votes of delegates registered to vote at the governing Justice and Development Party, or AKP’s, extraordinary congress.
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Mr Davutoglu announced earlier this month that he was stepping down amid differences with Mr Erdogan.
Almost 1,470 delegates are expected to elect the party’s third chairman of its history.
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has further consolidated his grip on the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) with his long-time ally officially throned as the chairman of the party on Sunday.
For the first time since World War II, a right-wing politician could win Sunday’s election for the Austrian presidency as established parties that have dominated postwar politics watch from the sidelines. But he has retained strong influence over both the party he founded and the government it leads, frequently hosting cabinet meetings in his new palace.
As such, he has been a key lieutenant of Erdogan in implementing what the president likes to call his “crazy” projects to create a “New Turkey”, nearly always pictured in the press wearing a hard hat and flourescent jacket.
Yildirim has taken a hardline stance towards Kurdish rebels seeking more autonomy in the southeast of Turkey that are now being quashed by a military operation launched by Ankara.
Under the current Turkish Constitution, the president largely plays a ceremonial role, but this no longer reflects the real situation, as Erdogan’s power to influence national affairs has eclipsed that of parliament.
“Turkey needs a new constitution”, he said to applause.
Yildirim is expected to pick 12 members out of the MKYK as deputy chair people to run the political party.
Yildirim served as the director general of the Istanbul Ferries Company (IDO) from 1994 to 2000 while Erdogan was Istanbul’s mayor.
Yildirim will succeed Ahmet Davutoglu, who was forced out of office due to disagreement with President Erdogan.
Yildirim also told a special congress of the ruling AKP that Turkey would continue regulations to improve human rights and democracy whether or not European Union membership happens.
“This confusion over Turkey’s full membership and the migrant issue has to be brought to an end”, Yildirim said.
Analysts expect Yildirim to be a more pliant figure for Erdogan than Davutoglu, as the head of state presses on with his plan to create the presidential system.
This will set him apart from Davutoglu who sought to steal some of the limelight from the charismatic president, with populist and sometimes deafening speeches of his own.
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Erdogan’s critics have accused him of authoritarian behaviour, pointing to the growing number of investigations pursued against journalists along with a highly controversial bill adopted by parliament on Friday that would lift immunity for dozens of pro-Kurdish and other MPs and could see them evicted from parliament.
