Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday signalled that he intended to bring the next general election forward by one month to May 14, France 24 reports.
The announcement sets the stage for what some analysts view as Turkey's most consequential vote in generations.
Erdogan and his Islamic-rooted party have ruled Turkey for two tumultuous decades that have seen years of economic booms and busts as well wars and even a failed but bloody coup.
His secular opposition enters the campaign divided over everything from policy to strategy and has not agreed on a candidate to field against Erdogan.
Turkey's next general election is officially due to be held on June 18.
But Erdogan's allies have been hinting for weeks that they may bring the polls forward because of religious holidays and school exams.
Analysts believe that Erdogan's office is looking for a perfect moment at which his own voters are more likely to turn out than those backing his opponents.
On Wednesday Erdogan delivered a speech to his ruling party in which he recalled the day contemporary Turkey held its first free election in 1950.
That May 14 vote was won by Adnan Menderes -- a prime minister who was toppled by a military junta in 1960 and executed a year later.
Erdogan was himself deposed and briefly jailed when he was mayor of Istanbul in the 1990s and often compares himself to Menderes.
"The late Menderes said on May 14, 1950 'enough, the people will have their say', and emerged victorious at the ballot box," Erdogan said in televised remarks.
"Our people will give their answer to the (opposition) on the same day 73 years later."
