In Turkey, upcoming national elections could end the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)'s two decades in power, raising the risk of political instability, policymaking paralysis and even a constitutional crisis. Turkey's May 14 general election for parliament and president represents one of the most credible challenges to the almost 20-year governance of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with opposition presidential candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu either tied with or ahead of Erdogan in recent polls. The close nature of the election is largely due to high levels of discontent over Turkey's poorly-performing economy, with many Turks blaming the AKP for the high inflation and unemployment levels their country has seen in recent years. But Turks are also concerned about corruption, the state of democracy, the status of some three million refugees living in their country, and the reconstruction of regions that were heavily damaged by the February earthquakes. Running under the six-party...
