(VOVworld) - Turkish Transport Minister Binali Yildirim was unanimously elected on Sunday as the new leader of the ruling AK party and therefore the prime minister.

Binali Yildirim is a founding member of the governing AKP and close ally of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Photo: AP)

One of the cofounders of the AK party along with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Yildirim, 60, who was the sole candidate, won all the votes from the 1,405 delegates at an extraordinary party congress. Hours later, Erdogan gave Yildirim the mandate to form a new government as prime minister following the resignation of Ahmet Davutoglu, the presidency said.