Ceren Kenar is a consultant, political analyst and former journalist based in Istanbul and London.
April 01, 2024
Ordinary Turkish voters were left stunned following the conclusion of the local elections over the weekend.
The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) clinched 37.7 per cent of the nationwide votes, amassing 17.3 million votes, while the governing Justice and Development Party (AKP) secured 35.5 per cent, totaling 16.3 million votes, according to the preliminary results released by the semi-official Anadolu Agency.
This marks an astonishing victory for Turkey’s opposition, the first of its kind since 1977. They captured the five largest cities in the country and garnered the highest number of votes nationwide.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan conceded defeat and acknowledged that it’s time for some soul searching. “Turkish democracy once again proved itself and we had some setbacks we didn’t hope for. We will listen to the people’s will and self-critique ourselves on our mistakes.”
CHP was expected to secure victories in the three largest cities where it already held power: Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir. But the opposition surpassed expectations by securing wins in significant AKP strongholds across Anatolia, relegating it to the position of the second leading party in Turkey for the first time since its inception.
How did Mr Erdogan’s party experience such a significant setback less than a year after a major victory in the presidential election?
It was a disappointing weekend for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the governing AKP. AP
The impact of hyperinflation on rising living costs has caused dissatisfaction among many Turks
An AKP insider shed light on the notable disparity between last weekend’s vote and the one in May last year, saying: “While the majority of Turkish voters express a desire for President Erdogan to continue leading the country and endorse his leadership, it has become clear that many are also disillusioned with certain aspects of his policies.”
Mr Erdogan pursued populist economic policies in the run-up to last year’s election – such as increasing the minimum wage and pensions, and eliminating a retirement age requirement – but his economic team signalled a commitment to austerity measures and an orthodox monetary policy ahead of the local elections.
The impact of hyperinflation on rising living costs has caused dissatisfaction among many Turks, leading to a decline in their living standards. It appears there hasn’t been a significant voter shift from AKP to CHP, but rather that a considerable number of AKP voters have chosen not to vote, instead, in a silent boycott. The turnout for this election was 78.1 per cent – almost 6 per cent less than for the 2019 vote.
Following CHP’s triumph, smaller parties within the opposition bloc – such as the Democracy and Progress Party, Future Party, IYI Party and Victory Party – experienced resounding defeats, relegating them to near-insignificance in the political landscape. Moreover, Kurdish voters opted to support CHP candidates in metropolitan areas instead of those from the pro-Kurdish Democrat Party, resulting in a low turnout in Kurdish-dominated regions of the country.
Another notable outcome of the elections is the emergence of the New Welfare Party (YRP), founded as recently as 2018, which swiftly rose to become the third-largest party in the country, securing 6 per cent of the nationwide votes, totaling 2.8 million votes.
With its Islamist and far-right tilt, the YRP ran a campaign against the AKP, criticising the government’s failure to sever ties with Israel over the Gaza war, its decision to increase interest rates, and its endorsement of vaccination efforts. YRP effectively siphoned votes away from the AKP, bolstering the success of CHP candidates in numerous cities and districts.
According to several AKP insiders, Mr Erdogan will persist with austerity measures and orthodox economic policies, while keeping the current economic management team in place. However, an overhaul within the party leadership is expected.
Meanwhile, the opposition is jubilant. An adviser to Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, seen as the primary rival to Mr Erdogan in the 2028 presidential election, said: “Two trends collided: firstly, a deep wave of dissatisfied AKP voters left their party, and secondly, a new wave of voters joined CHP after the change in leadership.”
The election of Ozgur Ozel as the new CHP leader also seems to have revitalised the party, as Kemal Kilicdaroglu’s tenure ended after a series of election losses since 2010. Not only will the opposition benefit from a morale boost after these elections, but it will also enjoy increased monetary and non-monetary resources for better campaigning in the long run.
Mr Erdogan’s legitimacy won’t be significantly hampered by these elections, but a buoyed opposition could make governing even more challenging for him, particularly when it comes to unpopular austerity measures.
'Avengers: Infinity War'
Dir: The Russo Brothers
Starring: Chris Evans, Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Robert Downey Junior, Scarlett Johansson, Elizabeth Olsen
Four stars
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister. "We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know. “All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.” It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins. Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement. The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
World record transfers
1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
Raed Mozafar Abu Al Saoud, Minister of Water and Irrigation
Dr Bassam Samir Al Talhouni, Minister of Justice
Majd Mohamed Shoueikeh, State Minister of Development of Foundation Performance
Azmi Mahmud Mohafaza, Minister of Education and Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research
Falah Abdalla Al Ammoush, Minister of Public Works and Housing
Basma Moussa Ishakat, Minister of Social Development
Dr Ghazi Monawar Al Zein, Minister of Health
Ibrahim Sobhi Alshahahede, Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Environment
Dr Mohamed Suleiman Aburamman, Minister of Culture and Minister of Youth
Out
Dr Adel Issa Al Tawissi, Minister of High Education and Scientific Research
Hala Noaman “Basiso Lattouf”, Minister of Social Development
Dr Mahmud Yassin Al Sheyab, Minister of Health
Yahya Moussa Kasbi, Minister of Public Works and Housing
Nayef Hamidi Al Fayez, Minister of Environment
Majd Mohamed Shoueika, Minister of Public Sector Development
Khalid Moussa Al Huneifat, Minister of Agriculture
Dr Awad Abu Jarad Al Mushakiba, Minister of Justice
Mounir Moussa Ouwais, Minister of Water and Agriculture
Dr Azmi Mahmud Mohafaza, Minister of Education
Mokarram Mustafa Al Kaysi, Minister of Youth
Basma Mohamed Al Nousour, Minister of Culture
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
Ways to control drones
Countries have been coming up with ways to restrict and monitor the use of non-commercial drones to keep them from trespassing on controlled areas such as airports.
"Drones vary in size and some can be as big as a small city car - so imagine the impact of one hitting an airplane. It's a huge risk, especially when commercial airliners are not designed to make or take sudden evasive manoeuvres like drones can" says Saj Ahmed, chief analyst at London-based StrategicAero Research.
New measures have now been taken to monitor drone activity, Geo-fencing technology is one.
It's a method designed to prevent drones from drifting into banned areas. The technology uses GPS location signals to stop its machines flying close to airports and other restricted zones.
The European commission has recently announced a blueprint to make drone use in low-level airspace safe, secure and environmentally friendly. This process is called “U-Space” – it covers altitudes of up to 150 metres. It is also noteworthy that that UK Civil Aviation Authority recommends drones to be flown at no higher than 400ft. “U-Space” technology will be governed by a system similar to air traffic control management, which will be automated using tools like geo-fencing.
The UAE has drawn serious measures to ensure users register their devices under strict new laws. Authorities have urged that users must obtain approval in advance before flying the drones, non registered drone use in Dubai will result in a fine of up to twenty thousand dirhams under a new resolution approved by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai.
Mr Ahmad suggest that "Hefty fines running into hundreds of thousands of dollars need to compensate for the cost of airport disruption and flight diversions to lengthy jail spells, confiscation of travel rights and use of drones for a lengthy period" must be enforced in order to reduce airport intrusion.
