Turkish ruling party wants Erdogan presidential bid: officials --- (Reuters) - Turkey's ruling party would overwhelmingly back Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's candidacy in the nation's first direct presidential election, senior officials said on Thursday, a move his opponents fear would feed his autocratic instincts. -- The president has until now been chosen by parliament and played a largely ceremonial role. But Erdogan has said the popular vote will give the post more authority, and he has vowed to exercise its full powers if elected. -- A majority of the 300 deputies in Erdogan's AK Party voted in a secret ballot on Wednesday in favor of him running in the August presidential election, party officials told Reuters. -- The vote was meant as an informal test of the level of support within the party for a bid by Erdogan, which would mean him stepping down as party leader. The prime minister alone will decide on his candidacy, his aides have said. -- Erdogan, who has dominated Turkish politics for more than a decade, has made little secret of his ambition to run for the job. His party's strong showing in local elections last month, despite a corruption scandal dogging his inner circle, has strengthened expectations he will do so. - More, at: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/17/us-turkey-erdogan-idUSBREA3G0IL20140417