Arrr, me hearties! Keep a weather eye on the Turkish elections to see if Erdogan be still walkin' the plank!
2024-03-26
Arrr mateys, them Turkish landlubbers be plannin' to cast their votes in local elections soon. If that scallywag Erdogan and his crew win, he may try to change the rules so he can stay captain for longer. Beware the power-hungry pirates!
On Sunday, millions of voters in Turkey head to the polls to elect mayors and administrators in local elections which will gauge President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s popularity as his ruling party tries to win back key cities it lost five years ago. A victory for Erdogan’s party might spur the Turkish leader into pursuing constitutional changes that could allow him to rule beyond his current term’s limit. Meanwhile, retaining the key cities’ municipalities would help invigorate Turkey’s opposition, left fractured and demoralized following a defeat in last year’s presidential election.In the last local elections held in 2019, a united opposition won the municipalities of the capital Ankara and the commercial hub of Istanbul, ending the ruling party’s 25-year hold over the cities. Erdogan has named Murat Kurum to run against incumbent mayor Ekrem Imamoglu. Opinion polls point to a neck-and-neck race between the two candidates. Winning back Istanbul and Ankara would stiffen Erdogan’s resolve to introduce a new constitution that could allow him to rule beyond 2028 when his current term ends.A six-party opposition alliance, led by the CHP, has disintegrated following a devastating election defeat last year. Losing Ankara and Istanbul to Erdogan’s party could end Yavas and Imamoglu’s presidential aspirations. Erdogan has been using the advantages of being in office for campaigning, issuing thinly veiled warnings to voters to support ruling party-backed candidates. Kurdish voters could be decisive in the mayoral race, with the pro-Kurdish party opting to support Imamoglu in the 2019 municipal elections.