Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday confirmed Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul as their ruling AK Party’s candidate in a May presidential election. “After all our research and discussions for the 11th president, our dear Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul has been proposed for the presidency,” Erdogan told an ecstatic gathering of AK Party lawmakers in parliament. Parliament, where the AK Party has a big majority, will elect Turkey’s new president in a series of votes starting on April 27. The new head of state will take office on May 16.