A coalition of six opposition parties with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has chosen a candidate to challenge the incumbent head of state in May’s presidential election. The process of selecting an opposition candidate exposed some of the problems within the coalition that favors Erdogan.
In Ankara, around 2,000 people gathered on Monday to hear a speech by Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the leader of the Republican Party (CHP), who was chosen as the opposition’s unity candidate for Erdogan.
“Our table is the table of peace,” says Kilicdaroglu, a 74-year-old veteran of Turkish politics who faces the biggest test of his long career in May. “We will rule Turkey with consultations and consensus,” he promised.
Kilicdaroglu, an economist by training who spent most of his life as the head of Turkish social security, has led the CHP since 2010 and is seen as the architect of deep reform in the party founded by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, but his critics point to that. Failed to attract conservative voters loyal to Erdogan. His discreet profile and a bureaucratic career are viewed unfavorably compared to the charisma of the current president.
Elections scheduled for May 14, including presidential and parliamentary elections, represent the opposition’s biggest chance in years to oust Erdogan, who has ruled Turkey for more than two decades. Although he has modernized the Turkish economy, Erdogan is seen by the opposition and human rights groups as an increasingly authoritarian leader, minimizing the margins for dissent.
With a sharp rise in living costs and a years-long inflationary crisis, the opposition is on track to defeat Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP) and end an era. The impact of the earthquakes in southern Turkey, which have left more than 45,000 dead, has sparked a wider debate about the development model favored by the Erdogan government, as well as fostering a culture of corruption and a lack of oversight in civil construction. ., which can benefit the opposition.
However, the task of defeating Erdogan will not be simple. In addition to its control over the public machinery, the AKP is a well-oiled electoral machine with no defeat at the polls after two decades. The main exceptions were the 2019 local elections, where CHP candidates won some major Turkish cities, such as Istanbul or Ankara.
Opinion polls point to huge uncertainty, with Erdogan and the opposition candidate battling for first place, albeit with a slight advantage for the opposition, Reuters reported.
The opposition still has to deal with the internal divisions that emerged during the process of selecting a presidential candidate. On Friday, Meral Aksener, head of the IYI (Good in Turkey) party, is considered one of the most prominent politicians in anti-Erdogan circles. Aksaner preferred the coalition to support one of the mayors elected by the CHP, such as Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu or Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas, as he felt both would be more popular than the party leader.
After a weekend of talks, which included a promise to end opposition parties, an agreement was reached to allocate vice-presidential positions to the leaders of the five remaining parties that make up the coalition, as well as Imamoglu and Yawas. Explained the post of Vice President Guardian.
The deal was enough to bring back Aksener’s IYI and maintain a united front that all analysts see as decisive in standing up to Erdogan. “As long as he creates a coherent narrative around this decision, communicates it effectively, and confidently answers the questions people are asking themselves, Erdogan will have a clear path,” says political consultant Selim Sasak. Guardian.
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