The defense minister from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party was elected parliament speaker Wednesday.

The defense minister from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ruling party was elected parliament speaker Wednesday, reducing prospects of a grand coalition between the assembly's two biggest parties.

Ismet Yilmaz — the ruling party's, Justice and Development Party (AKP), nominee and the defense minister in the outgoing government — won 258 votes Wednesday, beating the left-wing party's candidate in a face-off Wednesday, AP reported. The nationalist party cast invalid votes, implicitly helping Yilmaz take the post to lead Turkey's 550-seat parliament.

Yilmaz, a relatively low-profile candidate, was running against Deniz Baykal, veteran former leader of the main opposition CHP Republican People's Party, who won 182 votes in the final round of voting.

The Nationalist Movement Party's (MHP) candidate Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu and pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party's (HDP) candidate Dengir Mir Firat were eliminated in the third round of voting, according to AFP.

The AKP has 258 seats in the parliament, CHP 132, and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) 80 apiece.

Had a consensus candidate been elected speaker, it could have pointed to a coalition between the AKP and the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP).

Even though AKP are still by far the largest party, the June 7 election was a blow not only to its authority but also to Erdogan, who had been hoping the new parliament would agree on a new constitution to increase his powers.