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Politicians also subject to gravity
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Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan frequently lashed out at the media during his election campaign trials. And each time he said, "People will decide the headlines on March 29."Yes, voters decided the headlines following yesterday’s local polls. But it is impossible to say that the results made Mr. Prime Minister happy. We see the following subtitles of this headline:
Since the beginning of its political journey that started in 2002, this is the first time the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, has faced a fall. In the 2002 general elections, the AKP grabbed 34.4 percent of total votes. In the 2004 city council elections, the party pulled this figure to 41.6 percent and in the 2007 general elections the AKP made a peak at 46.5 percent of total vote cast. But this time, the governing party dropped below 40 percent, lower than that of the 2004 local polls. The AKP has become a party losing power. This is the biggest loss of Erdoğan’s political career.
In addition to this, the AKP will continue its way as the main player in Turkish politics, although the party suffered damage, political stability will not be upset. An important aspect of this new period is that the opposition will have more self-confidence as the AKP steps backward. We can say that the ballot gave sound and healthy results in terms of checks and balance of the democratic system. The most important result of the March 29 local polls is that arrogance and excessiveness in use of political power applied by the government will be curbed.
The Nationalist Movement Party, or MHP, increased votes, stole away many municipalities from the AKP and they are now stronger in the political arena. The same can be said of the CHP. However, it is obvious that the most successful party of this election is the Saadet (Felicity) Party for achieving the highest percentage of increase in terms of number of votes they won. Under the leadership of Numan Kurtulmuş, Saadet has gained a new momentum and installed its place in the political equation. The AKP from now on should recon with the Saadet threat for the Saadet is claiming back its traditional grassroots from Erdoğan. In the new term, we will hear Saadet’s voice more. Likewise, the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party, or DTP, with its incontestable success in the southeast has proven to be the main player in the region.
The AKP stuck in Anatolia
We see that the AKP is the only party existing in all geographic regions of the country. The CHP rather collected votes in Trace, the west and south, and on the coastal line of the country. The AKP and CHP shared the Black Sea region. The AKP seems stuck mostly inside Anatolia. Hatay is the only province on the southern coast where the ruling party can have access to the sea. It is for sure that the global economic crisis is one of the most important factors in the reduction of the number of AKP’s votes. It is a fact that governing parties wear out in time and that the AKP is not an exception. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan should realize that his heavy-handed attitude and his consistent scolding of his opponents do not help his political fortunes.
Sunday’s election results will undoubtedly help to remove the pessimism that is prevailing in some segments of Turkish society that the AKP will never let go off the government. One must have seen that the AKP can in deed be overcome in democratic regime; however, one needs to pay tremendous efforts for this.Success of the CHP reached in Istanbul should be carefully examined as a laboratory in sociological and political aspects and lessons should be learned from now on. This could be helpful for the CHP. Apparently, voters want to see new faces and are willing to give them a chance.
A last but crucial point: An important difference between Sunday’s local polls and the July 22, 2007 general elections is that the military establishment this time was cautious enough to stay away from the election debate. The AKP, being able to translate military interventions such as the April 27, 2007 e-memorandum into its own political gains in the ballots, this time lacked such a strategic instrument. That means it is possible to overcome the AKP without pushing the limits of the system by remaining within the boundaries of democracy. Let democracy work, our biggest guide should be democratic patience.
Sedat Ergin is editor-in-chief of the daily Milliyet in which this piece appeared yesterday. It was translated into English by the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review's staff
In addition to this, the AKP will continue its way as the main player in Turkish politics, although the party suffered damage, political stability will not be upset. An important aspect of this new period is that the opposition will have more self-confidence as the AKP steps backward. We can say that the ballot gave sound and healthy results in terms of checks and balance of the democratic system. The most important result of the March 29 local polls is that arrogance and excessiveness in use of political power applied by the government will be curbed.
The Nationalist Movement Party, or MHP, increased votes, stole away many municipalities from the AKP and they are now stronger in the political arena. The same can be said of the CHP. However, it is obvious that the most successful party of this election is the Saadet (Felicity) Party for achieving the highest percentage of increase in terms of number of votes they won. Under the leadership of Numan Kurtulmuş, Saadet has gained a new momentum and installed its place in the political equation. The AKP from now on should recon with the Saadet threat for the Saadet is claiming back its traditional grassroots from Erdoğan. In the new term, we will hear Saadet’s voice more. Likewise, the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party, or DTP, with its incontestable success in the southeast has proven to be the main player in the region.
The AKP stuck in Anatolia
We see that the AKP is the only party existing in all geographic regions of the country. The CHP rather collected votes in Trace, the west and south, and on the coastal line of the country. The AKP and CHP shared the Black Sea region. The AKP seems stuck mostly inside Anatolia. Hatay is the only province on the southern coast where the ruling party can have access to the sea. It is for sure that the global economic crisis is one of the most important factors in the reduction of the number of AKP’s votes. It is a fact that governing parties wear out in time and that the AKP is not an exception. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan should realize that his heavy-handed attitude and his consistent scolding of his opponents do not help his political fortunes.
Sunday’s election results will undoubtedly help to remove the pessimism that is prevailing in some segments of Turkish society that the AKP will never let go off the government. One must have seen that the AKP can in deed be overcome in democratic regime; however, one needs to pay tremendous efforts for this.Success of the CHP reached in Istanbul should be carefully examined as a laboratory in sociological and political aspects and lessons should be learned from now on. This could be helpful for the CHP. Apparently, voters want to see new faces and are willing to give them a chance.
A last but crucial point: An important difference between Sunday’s local polls and the July 22, 2007 general elections is that the military establishment this time was cautious enough to stay away from the election debate. The AKP, being able to translate military interventions such as the April 27, 2007 e-memorandum into its own political gains in the ballots, this time lacked such a strategic instrument. That means it is possible to overcome the AKP without pushing the limits of the system by remaining within the boundaries of democracy. Let democracy work, our biggest guide should be democratic patience.
Sedat Ergin is editor-in-chief of the daily Milliyet in which this piece appeared yesterday. It was translated into English by the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review's staff
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