Alwaght | News & Analysis Website

Alwaght- The 25th round of Turkey parliamentary election will be held with the presence of political parties and independent candidates on June 7, 2015. In this election 1,047,192 people inside the country and 56,066 people outside have reached the age of 18 and enjoy the right to vote. According to the official announcement of the Supreme Electoral Council of Turkey, 53,765,231 people inside the country and 2,868,658 people outside in 112 polling stations in 54 countries have the right to vote and stand for election. Ballot box committee is composed of seven members five of whom are members of political parties. This election will play an important role in Turkey's political future because it is the first parliamentary election after direct election of president. In addition, the next parliament will have a great impact on the future of this country's political system and converting parliamentary system into a presidential one. Recep Tayyip Erdogan also believes that Turkey's political system needs to be converted to a presidential one because it will accelerate development of the country. However, 335 seats from 550-seat assembly are sufficient for the establishment of presidential system.
Turkish political parties and coalitions are in a competition to win seats in the parliament.
Election idiosyncrasies:
1. A great change in Justice and Development Party (AKP)
127 MPs from the Justice and Development Party have once again been put on this party’s electoral list but 185 MPs were removed from this list and some others nominated by this party. This substitution is a great change in the AKP because most of the old members of the party have been replaced by the new ones.
2. growth in the number of female candidates in Turkish parliament
Women are at the center of electoral campaigns of this election. Democratic People's Party with an emphasis on gender equality has put 268 women on its electoral list and the Republican People's Party has allocated a special quota to women putting 103 women on its list. 99 women have been placed in the electoral list of the AKP and 61 in the list of National Movement Party that vows women will form an influential group in Turkish parliament for the first time. In 2011, the number of female members of political parties nominated for Turkey’s parliamentary election was 268 that have reached to 531 for the next election. Currently, 45 out of 312 MPs from the AKP are women and it is expected to increase to 80. At present, there are 77 female MPs in the Turkish parliament. This number may reach 86 in the next election.
3. People’s approach to the election
The poll conducted by ANDY-AR Research Institute indicated that about two months ago 20 percent of those eligible to vote did not decide to take part in the election but it is now declined to14 percent. In western cities of Turkey, People will vote for the party lists. In central, eastern and southeastern Anatolia they will vote for the prominent or tribe-backed figures.
4. The possibility of split
In the AKP's electoral list, on one hand there are candidates close to center-right Democratic Party and on the other hand the People's Voice Party headed by Numan Kurtulmuş with Islamic tendencies close to the National Movement. Therefore, there is the possibility of a split in this party.
5. Kurdish opposition to presidential system
US ambassador to Turkey along with the consul general in Istanbul traveled to Kurdish areas and Diyarbakir in east and southeast Turkey and met with leaders of Kurdish parties. They raised questions about Erdogan's desired presidential system and implicitly emphasized that presidential system may lead to dictatorship. The Kurdish parties also announced their opposition to the establishment of Erdogan's desired presidential system.
 6. Alawites and Shiites' approach
With regard to Erdogan's individualistic approach to religion and the AKP's Ottoman approach, Alawites and Shiites will not vote for this party. Their votes will be absorbed by the Republican People's Party and limitedly (vote of Kurdish Alawites) by Democratic People's Party.