AKP’s İzmir votes deemed a success
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Serdar Alyamaç - Analysis
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Nisan 02, 2009 00:00
İZMİR - With everyone focused on the Republican People’s Party, or CHP’s, landslide in İzmir and its 55 percent of votes, it might sound strange to say the Justice and Development Party, or AKP, achieved success as well.
In İzmir, the AKP received 31.10 percent of the votes for the metropolitan municipality and 29.69 percent of the votes for the municipal assembly. It is no surprise the ruling party came in way behind the CHP, which received 48.25 percent of the municipal assembly votes. But the fact that its İzmir vote percentage went down by only 0.81 percent, despite many negative factors, is a topic worth discussing.
First of all, probably even the AKP would accept that its background is very different from that of İzmir. Though the difference is ideological, it does not stem from the split between the right and the left in terms of politics. It is more of a conflict between the liberal and democrat (not leftist) residents of İzmir, who have a Western view of life, and a conservative political party that focuses on religion.
Demographic change
There is no doubt that the demographic structure of İzmir has changed, with migration to the city increasing 39.88 percent in 2000, according to research by the Turkish Statistical Institute, or TÜİK. This is not a number to be taken lightly, even if it is no more than 20 percent today. It would also not be incorrect to guess that most of the migrants are conservative Anatolians. But an important factor should not be missed: With the most developed and solid urban culture in Turkey likely the one in İzmir, the migrants are apt to Ğ unlike in Istanbul Ğ get integrated into İzmir’s identity. Looked at another way, these migrants, though fewer in numbers than the core secular, liberal and democrat voting bloc in İzmir, do form a base of support for the AKP.
If we look at the conditions of the time when the elections were held, we will see that although the prime minister says the crisis has "barely missed us," through this election, he also saw that the crisis has not yet revealed its true face. It is being reported that since the crisis began, 20,000 people have lost their jobs in İzmir; that’s 20,000 people and their families affected.
In a city where urban awareness and personal interaction are as high as they are in İzmir, statements from the AKP such as "I want İzmir" and "We will take over" probably scared the ordinary İzmir resident, who sees the AKP as a threat to their values and view of life. Thus their defenses went up and the individual channels of communication began to work to the AKP’s disadvantage.
Despite all this, the AKP, which experienced an 8 percent decrease in its votes on a national scale and took a beating in the mayoral election, can be considered successful because its vote totals in İzmir decreased only 0.81 percent compared to the general elections of 2007. It certainly bears thought.
It would be wrong to conclude without mentioning the CHP or asking the obvious question about it: A mass party that would stand for secular values does not exist for the center-right voters of İzmir to support, if we do not count the 9.98 percent given to the Nationalist Movement Party, or MHP, in the mayoral election. Because the CHP gets votes from the people of İzmir through an appeal to secular values, what would it do if such a party existed?
First of all, probably even the AKP would accept that its background is very different from that of İzmir. Though the difference is ideological, it does not stem from the split between the right and the left in terms of politics. It is more of a conflict between the liberal and democrat (not leftist) residents of İzmir, who have a Western view of life, and a conservative political party that focuses on religion.
Demographic change
There is no doubt that the demographic structure of İzmir has changed, with migration to the city increasing 39.88 percent in 2000, according to research by the Turkish Statistical Institute, or TÜİK. This is not a number to be taken lightly, even if it is no more than 20 percent today. It would also not be incorrect to guess that most of the migrants are conservative Anatolians. But an important factor should not be missed: With the most developed and solid urban culture in Turkey likely the one in İzmir, the migrants are apt to Ğ unlike in Istanbul Ğ get integrated into İzmir’s identity. Looked at another way, these migrants, though fewer in numbers than the core secular, liberal and democrat voting bloc in İzmir, do form a base of support for the AKP.
If we look at the conditions of the time when the elections were held, we will see that although the prime minister says the crisis has "barely missed us," through this election, he also saw that the crisis has not yet revealed its true face. It is being reported that since the crisis began, 20,000 people have lost their jobs in İzmir; that’s 20,000 people and their families affected.
In a city where urban awareness and personal interaction are as high as they are in İzmir, statements from the AKP such as "I want İzmir" and "We will take over" probably scared the ordinary İzmir resident, who sees the AKP as a threat to their values and view of life. Thus their defenses went up and the individual channels of communication began to work to the AKP’s disadvantage.
Despite all this, the AKP, which experienced an 8 percent decrease in its votes on a national scale and took a beating in the mayoral election, can be considered successful because its vote totals in İzmir decreased only 0.81 percent compared to the general elections of 2007. It certainly bears thought.
It would be wrong to conclude without mentioning the CHP or asking the obvious question about it: A mass party that would stand for secular values does not exist for the center-right voters of İzmir to support, if we do not count the 9.98 percent given to the Nationalist Movement Party, or MHP, in the mayoral election. Because the CHP gets votes from the people of İzmir through an appeal to secular values, what would it do if such a party existed?