5 influential factors in Erdogan’s victory.
Finally, after many twists and turns, Turkey’s 2023 elections ended with the decisive victory of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, so that Besh Tepe Palace will once again host this invincible Ankara politician for the next five years.
The elections of this presidential term of Turkey have been the most unpredictable and tense elections in the life of the republic of this country because, in this round of competitions, we have actually witnessed a deep divide in the popular and political society of Turkey and the confrontation of two different political discourses, namely Islam. We have been religious and secular. However, with all this, the assumption that Erdogan, the veteran Turkish politician, would be defeated was a bit far-fetched. The reason is that despite all the economic crises and hardships of Turkey’s post-earthquake era, the president of this country is still considered an acceptable political figure in Turkey.
But the main question is this; What factors were influential in Erdoğan’s victory and the defeat of his rival, Kılıçdaroğlu?
First of all, it should be said that if this round of victory ended hard for Erdogan and this year’s election was extended to the second round, it was not because of the increase in popularity of Kılıçdaroğlu, but because of the economic stagnation and weak management during the earthquake in Turkey.
But the first and most important reason that caused Kılıçdaroğlu’s defeat again against Erdoğan is his alliance with the opposition leaders known as the “Nation Coalition”. The difference in approach and attitude among the six opposition parties in this coalition was one of the most important factors in people’s mistrust of Farda Yirozi Kilicdaroglu as the presidential candidate of this coalition. Because it was predicted that on the day after the election, there would be strong differences of opinion between these parties in the way of managing the country, and as a result, the society’s conditions would return not to the direction of development and progress, but to same Turkey before Erdoğan.
The silence of “Good Party” leader Mrs. Meral Akhsner as a member of the Mellat coalition after the first round of elections was a sign of deep instability within the coalition, which was enough to make the supporters of the coalition disappointed with the victory of Kılıçdaroğlu.
The second reason can be examined in people’s attention to the issue of survival and security compared to the economy; In the last two years, Erdogan’s critical parties and journalists tried to question the type of management of Erdogan and his team in the economic issue by resorting to attacks and criticism in order to prepare the ground for his defeat in the elections. Of course, to some extent, they were able to bring an important part of the society with them, but this issue was not enough to defeat Erdogan. Because the issue that Erdogan was able to instill in public opinion was the importance of the country’s security and survival in the face of foreign threats.
When the Ankara authorities related the election to the issue of survival and said that this election is related to the issue of the country’s survival, they conveyed this fear to the public opinion that in case of defeat of Erdogan and his party, there is a possibility of jeopardizing the stability and security of the country and the end of the survival of Turkey. . Erdogan’s victory shows that despite people’s dissatisfaction with the country’s economic conditions, security is by far the most important component for Turkish people.
The third reason is Erdogan’s continued popularity among Islamist and traditional groups; This section of Turkish society is very important for Erdogan, and in fact, this section is the most important asset of Erdogan for his political life. For this reason, in the last few years, Erdogan has made every effort to keep this Islamist section with him always, for this reason, an important part of Erdogan’s speeches is always organized around topics that this group likes, for example, Erdogan always ends his speech. He prays, “Oh God, don’t leave our minarets without a call to prayer and our country without a flag.” This is exactly the same literature that created patriotism and Islamism among the traditional stratum. This class, who suffered many hardships in the period before Erdogan because of their religious beliefs and observing the hijab of dignity, consider Erdogan as their savior in today’s Turkey and prefer him to remain the ruler of the country.
