Peyman Eshaghi
Turkey’s upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections will begin on May 14. The significance of this election is heightened by the fact that it will take place in the centennial year of the Republic of Turkey’s founding and that the country has been experiencing a deteriorating social and economic situation over the past few years; both make it a momentous occasion. The everyday lives of the Turkish people have been hampered by the actual inflation rate being over 200% in the preceding year. Considering the regional and international position of Turkey, that’s why many think the impending Turkish elections in 2023 are the most crucial ones anywhere in the globe.The difference in the rate of inflation in Turkey last year, according to the Turkish Statistics Organization (TÜIK), which is a government institution, and the “Inflation Research Group” (Enflasyon Araştırma Grubu), which is a private institution.
Similarly to the early years of the Republic of Turkey, Turkey is known by reference to its leader both inside and outside of Turkey, and this is true in the political, economic, and cultural realms. The Justice and Development Party has significantly shaped Turkey in these areas for over two decades. Since 2002, under Erdogan’s leadership, his Party has dominated municipal and national elections, positioning Turkey prominently at the crossroads of Asia and Europe, between the Black and Mediterranean Seas. Since the Syrian civil war began in 2011, Turkey has been beset by several challenges. These include the influx of millions of immigrants from neighboring countries, the rise of ISIS in Iraq and Syria, the breakdown of negotiations between the Turkish government and its Kurdish political groups, the failed coup attempt in 2014, and the government’s poor economic decisions. Despite the country’s many decades of political disorder, the nation has had a measure of political stability in the five years since the last presidential and legislative elections. Still, the polls on May 14 this year are the start of a new and extended period of instability.
