President Trump called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to congratulate him on his referendum victory, according to the White House.
Observers from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Council of Europe said Sunday's referendum had been an uneven contest. He accused the board of "changing the rules midgame". This could enable President Erdogan to stay in power until 2029.
Trump's congratulations on Monday were in contrast with European Union leaders who have been reserved in their reaction to the narrow victory and even his own State Department, which earlier noted concerns expressed by global observers over the "uneven playing field".
Separately, Istanbul police detained 19 suspects on charges of attempted provocation for organizing protests against the referendum, Dogan News Agency reported.
"Democracies gain strength through respect for diverse points of view, especially on hard issues".
The Turkish government has been widely condemned by Western nations for its repression of opposition figures following a failed military coup previous year.
Tezcan said that "we demand the cancellation of this referendum".
Erdogan earlier congratulated cheering supporters at Ankara's airport for "standing tall" in the face of the "crusader mentality" of the West.
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At a 2 p.m. press conference, a PG&E officials said they expect to have power restored between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. After the Montgomery Street BART station was consumed by darkness it was shut completely down.
European governments struck a more cautious note.
It would dispense with the prime minister's post and centralise the entire executive bureaucracy under the president, giving Erdogan the direct power to appoint ministers.
Erdogan's victory was far tighter than expected, emerging only after several nail-biting hours late Sunday which saw the "No" result dramatically catch up. Despite a state of emergency and a widespread crackdown on dissent, he succeeded in persuading only 51.4% of voters to back his constitutional upheaval.
HDP deputy chairman Mithat Sancar said the vote was also undermined by the fact that the campaign was held under emergency rule while the party's co-leaders were under arrest, that its candidates for polling station monitors were rejected, and that state resources were used in the "Yes" campaign. The change has raise concerns of "ballot-stuffing" - where extra votes are cast illegally to manipulate results. "But figures already published show that Turkish society is divided on this planned important reforms", it said, calling for "a free and honest dialogue" in Turkey among all components of political and social life.
Erdogan has dismissed the criticism from the observers, telling the monitors to "know your place". Turkey's main opposition party urged the country's electoral board Monday to cancel the results of.
Addressing supporters in Ankara, Erdogan said the country could hold a referendum on its long-stalled European Union membership bid.
The White House said they also discussed a U.S. missile strike in Syria and the fight against the Islamic State group. As I said this will come before the parliament and if it is passed from the parliament, I would approve this. "Because we do not have the authority to forgive the murders of our martyrs", Erdogan said at a rally Monday.
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