Ersin Tatar

Ersin Tatar (born 7 September 1960) is a Turkish Cypriot politician who served as the fifth president of Northern Cyprus (de facto state) from 2020 to 2025. He previously served as the fourth Prime Minister of Northern Cyprus following the collapse of Tufan Erhürman's coalition government in 2019, and remained so until his election as president. He was also the leader of the National Unity Party (UBP) and Leader of the Opposition from 2018 until his election.

Early life Tatar comes from a family of Crimean Tatars who left Crimea in the 19th century and eventually moved to Cyprus. Tatar was born in Nicosia on 7 September 1960, the son of Canev and Rüstem Tatar. His father was also a politician. He was sent to England to attend Forest School, a private boarding school in Walthamstow, then earned an economics degree from Cambridge University's Jesus College in 1982.

Pre-politics career From 1982 to 1986, Tatar worked as a chartered accountant for PriceWaterhouse in London. From 1986 to 1991, he worked for Polly Peck, and was the company's assistant treasurer when it collapsed with debts of £1.3 billion. In the resulting trial that led to CEO Asil Nadir receiving a 10-year jail term, it was alleged that Tatar had "assisted Mr. Nadir in the dishonest movement of money from PPI and enjoyed a close working relationship with the Polly Peck boss".

In 1991, Tatar moved to Ankara, where he worked at FMC Nurol Defense Industry Co. until 1992. From 1992 to 2001, he was the general coordinator of Show TV, a Turkish television channel owned by Ciner Media Group.

Politics Tatar entered politics in 2003, joining the National Unity Party (UBP). He was first elected to Parliament in 2009, serving as Finance Minister under Derviş Eroğlu until his party's electoral defeat in 2013. He unsuccessfully ran for the UBP leadership in 2015, before running again and winning in 2018. He is a supporter of a two-state solution to the Cyprus dispute.

One week before the 2020 Northern Cyprus presidential election, Tatar visited Turkey. After his arrival, he announced that he would be reopening the Varosha beachfront with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's blessing. The move to open Varosha, which had been closed to the public and guarded by Turkish soldiers since the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus, attracted widespread condemnation both in Northern Cyprus and the Republic of Cyprus, as well as the international community. His Deputy Prime Minister Kudret Özersay resigned, accusing of Tatar of stealing his idea; Özersay, who was the first to call for the reopening of Varosha under Turkish Cypriot control, said he was against Tatar's decision because he had turned the issue into a campaign matter ahead of the election. Özersay was also a candidate in the election. Tatar took office on 23 October.

Tatar was decisively defeated in the 2025 Northern Cypriot presidential election on 19 October 2025, receiving 35.81% of the vote while former Prime Minister Tufan Erhürman received 62.76%.

Personal life Tatar is married to Sibel Tatar, with whom he has two children.