Turkish Cypriots vote in an election seen as a choice on deeper Turkey ties or closer EU relations

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NICOSIA (AP) — Breakaway Turkish Cypriots on ethnically divided Cyprus cast ballots Sunday in an election that many see as a choice between an even deeper alignment with Turkey or a shift toward closer ties with the rest of Europe.

There are some 218,000 registered voters. Polls close at 1500 GMT. Seven candidates are vying for the leadership spot but the main two contenders are the hard-right incumbent Ersin Tatar and the center-left Tufan Erhurman.

Tatar, 65, vociferously supports permanently dividing Cyprus by pursuing international recognition for a Turkish Cypriot state that will be aligned even closer to Turkey’s political, economic and social policies.

Tatar has taken his cue from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who repeated at the U.N. General Assembly last month that there are “two separate states“ on Cyprus while calling for the international community to extend formal recognition to a Turkish Cypriot “state.”

Erhurman, 55, advocates a return to negotiating with Greek Cypriots on forging a two-zone federation. He has criticized Tatar’s reluctance to engage in formal peace talks during his five-year tenure as a costly loss of time that has pushed Turkish Cypriots farther on the international periphery.

Cyprus was divided in 1974, when Turkey invaded days after Greek junta-backed supporters of union with Greece mounted a coup.

Turkish Cypriots declared independence in 1983, but only Turkey recognizes it and maintains more than 35,000 troops in the island’s northern third. Although Cyprus joined the European Union in 2004, only the Greek Cypriot south — where the internationally recognized government is seated — enjoys full membership benefits.

Many Turkish Cypriots hold EU-recognized Cyprus passports but live in the north.

Greek Cypriots consider the two-state proposition as a non-starter that’s contrary to the U.N. and EU-endorsed federation framework. They reject any formal partition for fear that Turkey would strive to control the entire island. Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides has repeatedly said there’s no chance that any talks premised on two states can happen.