By Assadollah Athari
The Justice and Development Party (AKP) won a decisive victory in the recent parliamentary election in Turkey. Many people believe that the main factors behind the AKP’s third consecutive victory were the party’s achievements in the political, economic, and cultural development of Turkey.
Let’s take a closer look at these achievements.
——— Political development
The emergence of a new political elite in various governmental posts and institutions in recent years is a manifestation of the fact that the new political structure is now open to a broader spectrum of the country’s elites. Earlier, the secular elite was always in power, and other academics and politicians were not allowed to have a say in the political process. But finally, in the 1950s, the Turkish Democratic Party was able to alter this equation.
In recent years, the religious elite has emerged as a new driving force in Turkey. And Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s AKP has actually provided the religious elite with a clear voice in the current administration.
Even Turkey’s minority Kurds, who were isolated for many decades, finally got a chance, and their candidates were allowed to run in the elections. The Kurdish politicians, who had successfully established a faction in the previous parliament, participated in the recent election as independent candidates. Earlier, Kurdish politicians were severely restricted. For example, Leyla Zana was imprisoned for 10 years for speaking Kurdish in the Turkish Parliament after taking her parliamentary oath. But now Turkey’s Kurds have a clear voice in the political structure. Therefore, it can be said that Erdogan has broken very dangerous taboos in Turkish society.
———– Economic development
Turkey is currently experiencing nine percent economic growth, which is comparable to China. The AKP has played an important role in the economic advancement of Turkey, and especially in the country’s energy issues. Turkey is now the world’s seventeenth largest economy and the sixth largest economy in Europe, and it plans to attain a place among the top ten economic powers by 2023.
———– Cultural development
The AKP has managed to create a balance between the elements of Islam and the national identity. Moreover, it has successfully resolved Turkey’s cultural disputes with Greece and Armenia. Indeed, the policy of zero tension with neighboring countries has created a congenial atmosphere for Turkey at the regional level.
Given the public confidence which was manifested in the recent election, the people of Turkey were the best ones to judge the performance of the government over the past few years.
The main supporters of the AKP in Turkey are the members of the Muslim bourgeoisie. The ideology of the party, its objectives, and also the ruling elite are three influential factors which led to the AKP winning over a large segment of the public in previous elections. Of course, Erdogan’s charismatic leadership is also an important element in the party’s popularity. Erdogan is a charismatic leader, not a populist ideologue. Populism has no place in Turkish civil society because the institutionalized political structure of Turkey does not tolerate such a way of thinking.
Through the revision of the constitution in 1909, Turkish society set off on the path of modernization, and this gradually paved the way for the establishment of a new political structure. Thus, populist concepts and practices have been properly controlled in this structure.
Erdogan’s victory speech provided another important example of how the AKP won the election. In the speech, he promised to work together with other parties to pave the way for the drafting of a new constitution that would fulfill the Turkish people’s demands for peace and justice.
Assadollah Athari is a senior university lecturer and a researcher at the Center for Middle East Strategic Studies, which is based in Tehran.
via tehran times : Factors behind the AKP’s victory.