Election spending reaches 1.1 bln liras
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Sadi Özdemir - Hürriyet
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Nisan 04, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - Turkey has spent approximately 1.1 billion Turkish Liras for the three-month long local elections period, amid a global financial crisis.
Election expenditures were made to persuade more than 48 million voters to vote for various candidates throughout the nation. Out of the total figure, the Treasury aid for the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, and the Nationalist Movement Party, or MHP, reached 195.3 million liras.
Considering a report by the Ankara Chamber of Commerce, or ATO, which showed per voter expenditure stood at 23 liras in the 2004 local elections, poll expenditures are rising rapidly. However, the economic crisis is expected to have affected the latest elections, resulting in a 10 percent contraction in expenditure.
Estimating 20 liras spending per voter, the figure stands at nearly 960 million liras for 48 million voters. With the Treasury aid included, the figure reaches 1.1 billion liras.
In line with a decision by the Constitutional Court, the AKP’s 22.8 million liras of Treasury aid was cut from the 111.3 million it would be receiving from the budget this year.
As 2009 is the election year, the three parties that qualified for state aid were given Treasury aid twice the amount that had been designated before. The AKP, CHP and MHP received 111.3 million, 49.8 million and 34.1 million liras respectively.
Despite the crisis, candidates spent lavishly in their campaigns. The average cost of a good promotion ranged between 20,000 to 40,000 liras. Candidates’ election budgets were spent mainly on election songs, advertisements and promotion companies, buses, speeches at local television channels, liaison offices, pamphlets, flags, pens and other printed materials, temporary employment costs, fuel for vehicles and meals.
Election spending provided cash inflow for many sectors. Advertisers, music producers and performers, the food sector, publishers, survey firms, hotels, bus firms, couriers, flower stores, sound installers, phone companies, rent-a-car services and peddlers collected the fruits of the campaign period amid the crisis climate.
Considering a report by the Ankara Chamber of Commerce, or ATO, which showed per voter expenditure stood at 23 liras in the 2004 local elections, poll expenditures are rising rapidly. However, the economic crisis is expected to have affected the latest elections, resulting in a 10 percent contraction in expenditure.
Estimating 20 liras spending per voter, the figure stands at nearly 960 million liras for 48 million voters. With the Treasury aid included, the figure reaches 1.1 billion liras.
In line with a decision by the Constitutional Court, the AKP’s 22.8 million liras of Treasury aid was cut from the 111.3 million it would be receiving from the budget this year.
As 2009 is the election year, the three parties that qualified for state aid were given Treasury aid twice the amount that had been designated before. The AKP, CHP and MHP received 111.3 million, 49.8 million and 34.1 million liras respectively.
Despite the crisis, candidates spent lavishly in their campaigns. The average cost of a good promotion ranged between 20,000 to 40,000 liras. Candidates’ election budgets were spent mainly on election songs, advertisements and promotion companies, buses, speeches at local television channels, liaison offices, pamphlets, flags, pens and other printed materials, temporary employment costs, fuel for vehicles and meals.
Election spending provided cash inflow for many sectors. Advertisers, music producers and performers, the food sector, publishers, survey firms, hotels, bus firms, couriers, flower stores, sound installers, phone companies, rent-a-car services and peddlers collected the fruits of the campaign period amid the crisis climate.