Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned voters that the victory of the broadest opposition alliance in his 20-year rule in the May elections will be a disaster for the country..

“We cannot leave Turkey at the mercy of a coalition that is colorful, greedy and lacks direction.. We cannot allow such a catastrophe,” Erdogan said on Saturday.

The escalation of Erdogan's rhetoric takes place against the backdrop of preparations for the elections to be held on May 14. His government has been criticized for high inflation and a poor response to the devastating earthquakes that rocked the country in early February..

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" But critical events in our region and the world have singled out the May 14 vote among others,” Erdogan said..

On Friday, Erdogan officially launched the most difficult election campaign of his career, pushing back the election by more than a month: to May 14 from the starting date of June 18.

Erdogan's rival is the only candidate nominated by the United Opposition from six parties, Kemal Kilicdaroglu. He promises to dismantle the executive presidential system introduced by Erdogan five years ago and return to orthodox economic policies..

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Erdogan has criticized the opposition's pledge to lead by consensus, saying it would mean a return to the divisive coalitions that created decades of instability before he came to power in 2002..