ASSESSMENTS

Turkey's Elections Give Erdogan Even More Control

Jun 25, 2018 | 21:17 GMT

In this photograph, Turks celebrate with a poster of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan outside his party headquarters in Istanbul on June 24, 2018.
People celebrate outside the Justice and Development Party (AKP) headquarters in Istanbul on June 24, 2018, during the Turkish presidential and parliamentary elections.

(ARIS MESSINIS/AFP/Getty Images)

Highlights

  • President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP) will use a clear popular mandate and constitutional amendments that expand presidential power to broaden Turkey's regional and global reach.
  • Abroad, the AKP will pursue a security-focused agenda buoyed by the electoral victories of hyper-nationalists.
  • The party will maintain its hard-line Kurdish policy, undermine its rivals in the Gulen movement and assert Turkey's influence throughout the Middle East.
  • Just as the AKP-led government has struggled to stabilize the country's currency and invite sustainable foreign investment in the past, external factors will continue to stymie the government's ability to manage the economy.

The Turkish High Electoral Board has yet to issue the official results, but the June 24 national elections for all intents and purposes are over, and incumbent Recep Tayyip Erdogan has secured another five-year term as president. With his victory, Erdogan can remain president for an additional two terms, until 2028. And he may even follow Russian President Vladimir Putin's model and swap in a loyalist for a single presidential term before running again in 2033 or beyond....

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