Turkey’s 2023 elections: Candidates or principles?

The main question surrounding the 2023 elections in Turkey is whether the candidates or the principles will prove more important

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Turkey s 2023 elections Candidates or principles
What will the destiny of alliances be in Turkey's elections

What will the destiny of alliances be in Turkey's elections?

Ankara decided to decrease the electoral threshold from 10% to 7%

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The opposition, which accuses Erdoğan of collaborating with the U.S. on the issue of Afghan refugees, is trying to give Erdoğan lessons in anti-imperialism. It is ridiculous to criticize a leader who has consistently shown a clear and strong stance against imperialism for many years

The Turkish opposition succeeded in placing the blame on Turkey's government for the Taliban's seizure of power in Afghanistan. The opposition needs to stop terrorizing the public by references to "Talibanization"

The opposition in Turkey is looking for a presidential candidate for the 2023 elections. Yet they still face the same old dilemma: Bringing together political parties with contradicting ideologies

Turkey has made great efforts to reach its current position as a strong country, especially under President Erdoğan's government. The country is no longer a docile and passive ally of the West

Syrians and CHP: A discussion in Turkey

The leader of Turkey's main opposition party continues to make unrealistic statements about Syrian refugees. CHP's leader, who has frequently come forward with racist and xenophobic statements, now promises to send Syrian refugees back to their country

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Syrians and CHP A discussion in Turkey
CHP s tough reality in Turkey

CHP’s tough reality in Turkey

Zülfü Livaneli, a leftist intellectual, recently revealed the dilemmas of the Turkish 'left' and claimed that the CHP is not actually a leftist party. It is a mystery why the debate over the former leader of the main opposition did not come to the current party chairperson

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The Turkish opposition’s xenophobic approach towards Qatari investors is the pure reflection of their hostility against the government

Turkey’s opposition parties are locked in a competition with each other to generate the harshest political rhetoric possible as they attempt to block Kanal Istanbul, a megaproject set to create an artificial waterway between the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea.

For the record, it is not yet clear which political parties will contest the next election as part of the Nation Alliance. Potential changes to Turkey’s electoral system, too, may tilt the balance of power.

Turkey’s 2023 elections, which will take place on the republic’s centennial, will be the most critical election in the history of Turkish democracy. You may disagree with that statement, recalling that past elections have been described the same way. You may add that commentators have talked about “historic” elections countless times since 2013.

Opposition leaders Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu of the Republican People's Party (CHP) and Meral Akşener of the Good Party (IP) continue to call for an early election, whenever they feel like it.

The backlash over U.S. President Joe Biden’s statement on the so-called Armenian 'genocide' continues. Deeming the Turkish government’s reaction insufficient, opposition leaders argued that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan lacked 'the courage to hang up on Biden.' Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairperson Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and Good Party (IP) leader Meral Akşener eagerly attacked the government much more fiercely than they reacted to the White House statement. Turkey’s contemporary foreign policy, they said, was actually responsible for what happened.

The opposition elites, by contrast, cannot rid themselves of "othering" – secularist fanaticism. They are certainly miles away from having the kind of self-confidence needed to govern a country like Turkey.

Muharrem Ince, who was the main opposition Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) presidential candidate in 2018, resigned on Feb. 8, following in the footsteps of three other parliamentarians. His critique of the CHP leadership was strongly worded and comprehensive.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan created the framework for the 2023 elections by calling for a new and civilian constitution. The need for a civilian constitution dates back to the adoption of the 1982 Constitution, an embodiment of the authoritarianism of coup leaders, hence, the frequent discussions on constitutional reform over the last 39 years – and 19 constitutional amendments. Yet Turkey still has not managed to talk about its political problems at the constitutional level.

The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) made headlines again, as three parliamentarians resigned and Muharrem Ince, the CHP’s presidential candidate in the 2018 election, is preparing to launch his own movement. CHP Deputy Özgür Özel, the minority whip, blamed these developments on President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, but the problem is more complex and deeply rooted. CHP Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu’s policy of stripping his party of ideology and identity, in an attempt to unite the opposition, appears to have hit a dead end.

The balance of power between the ruling Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) People’s Alliance and the opposition Nation Alliance will have a defining impact on Turkish politics and Turkey’s 2023 elections. Since all parties are aware of that fact, both sides began to take certain steps shortly after the 2018 election. For the record, they follow similar game plans: They want to consolidate their respective alliances and chip away at the opposing bloc.

Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the chairperson of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), regularly complains about Turkey’s “artificial” agenda, but that did not stop him from starting a polarizing war of words by referring to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as “the so-called president.” With voters unimpressed by his rants about the economy and coronavirus-related problems, the main opposition leader turned to verbally abusing Turkey’s president – the staple of his rhetoric.

llegations of a coup dominated Turkey’s political arena before the Muslim headscarf controversy could be put to bed. From a journalist’s dream of “a great natural disaster” to topple President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to a former military commander claiming that the 1960 coup could have been avoided if an early election had been called, to the attempted birth of an opposition movement over the appointment of Boğaziçi University’s new rector, Turkey is dealing with a range of fierce debates. All of these conflicts attest to the resilience of the idea of Kemalist tutelage, which simply refuses to respect popular will.