ANKARA, May 6: The sole candidate in Turkey’s presidential election, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, withdrew his name on Sunday after parliament failed for a second time to vote him into office.

“As things stand now, I am withdrawing my candidacy for the presidential election,” said Mr Gul, a senior member of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), which has its roots in a once-banned Islamist group. “Given the situation, a second-round vote makes no sense,” he said.

His announcement came hours after a re-run, first-round ballot was cancelled by parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc when two separate roll calls showed the number of lawmakers present was below the 367 -- two-thirds of the house -- required to make the vote valid.

“Even though I have withdrawn my candidacy, the process for selecting the head of state continues,” he said.

On Saturday, tens of thousands of protestors had turned out across Turkey to call on Mr Gul to withdraw.—Agencies