Türkiye wants its second century as a republic to have a start that will change the course of history, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Saturday as he likened the "Century of Türkiye" vision to the Battle of Manzikert (Malazgirt), a Seljuk victory that paved the way for Turkish domination in modern-day Türkiye.

Speaking at a commemoration ceremony in the eastern Muş province, a key region in the defeat of the Byzantine forces 952 years ago, the president said the Turkish people "have made a nation through great struggle for centuries on end by protecting it with their blood, ruling it fairly and embracing all in it."

"We won the Battle of Malazgirt at the start of a millennium and now we’re here with the same excitement at the onset of a second millennium," Erdoğan told cheering crowds.

Referring to the local elections slated for March 31, 2024, the president said: "Are we ready to take back our provinces from those who have disgraced them? Are we determined to make 2023 when our republic turns 100 an occasion for a new jump?"

The Century of Türkiye is not a random aside, Erdoğan went on. "It’s a vision with a massive labor and struggle behind it. We have fortified the achievements of our republic at every turn in the past 20 years and now we believe it’s time to focus on our actual targets built on this strong infrastructure."

Erdoğan has been touting the Century of Türkiye vision since last year. The vision encapsulates an ambitious set of political, economic, social and cultural innovations and developments his government aims to accomplish to celebrate Türkiye’s centenary as a republic.

It was in focus during the run-up to the presidential and parliamentary elections in May and it’s set to dominate his ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AK Party) campaign for next year’s mayoral elections, as well.

In comparing the Century of Türkiye to the Malazgirt victory, Erdoğan hit out at his opposition, too, arguing their opponents were "watching helplessly our accomplishments."

He urged the crowd not to heed the opposition’s "attempts to spread negativity" and said the Turkish youth reminded them "that they are already put in the dusty shelves of history."

"While we’re building the Century of Türkiye, all they will do is watch our monument of victory," he said.

Turkish lands will never be without its heroes and heroines, Erdoğan said, referring to Seljukian sultans, Ottoman fighters and modern Türkiye’s founder Atatürk. "Therefore, the construction of the Century of Türkiye cannot be prevented," he stressed.

The AK Party is set to start shaping its candidate list in November for the upcoming local elections scheduled for March, a party official recently said.

Applications for mayoral candidates will open after the party convenes its extraordinary council on Oct. 7 as it concentrates on campaign strategies, Deputy Chair Hamza Dağ informed.

The upcoming polls will be a test for the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) municipalities, which govern over 50% of the population, namely Türkiye’s top metropolitans Istanbul, the capital Ankara and Izmir.

The AK Party has been working to rekindle lost support in especially Istanbul, which, politically, is seen as the most important administrative region in Türkiye and carries symbolic significance for Erdoğan since his time as mayor served as a launchpad for the foundation of the AK Party in 2001 and their subsequent election in 2003.

In the 2019 local elections, the party lost control of Istanbul and Ankara for the first time in 25 years, as well as five of Türkiye’s largest cities, to the CHP.

It has launched a comprehensive field effort to draft election declarations suitable for the needs, demands and deficits, of the local fabric of each of the 81 provinces before next year’s race.

Additionally, the party is preparing for its eighth major congress scheduled in September, where party leaders and governing bodies will be determined.

Before that, the delegates are readying to kick off parliamentary efforts to fulfill the promises Erdoğan has made during the campaigning period, particularly ones made for youths, like onetime-only consumption tax discounts on first purchases of mobile phones, tablets and computers, as well as free mobile data.

Erdoğan also assured a family and youth bank would be established to finance housewives and struggling students. The party will work to establish legal groundwork at Parliament to award interest-free TL 150,000 ($5,649.80) loans to newlyweds.