Turkey: What is Erdogan hoping for with the early election date?

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the president of Turkey and the head of the AKP, has called for the May 14 date to be moved up for the parliamentary and presidential elections. Erdogan claimed in a video released by the Presidential Office that he had reached an agreement with Devlet Bahceli, the chairman of the right-wing MHP, on this.

At the latest, the elections were supposed to take place on June 18. The 14th of May is a significant day.

The first free elections were held on May 14, 1950, following the establishment of the multi-party system. The High Electoral Council must announce the election date by March 10th at the latest in order for the elections to take place on May 14.

The election campaign then gets under way. Erdogan's opponent in the presidential contest has not yet been determined.

In an alliance made up of six opposition parties, a joint candidate announcement is planned for February. Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the head of the largest opposition party, or Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul, are the most likely candidates.

Imamoglu, however, was found guilty of insulting officials and was given a prison sentence and a political ban in December. The Court of Cassation is expected to confirm this conviction. In the polls, Erdogan is gaining ground. If the pro-kurdish hdp sticks with co-chairman Pervin Buldan as the third candidate, the winner of the presidency would presumably only be decided in a second round of voting.

After discussions with the Alliance of Six, it cannot be completely ruled out that the HDP will withdraw its candidate. Because it is thought to be able of mobilizing in a runoff and winning more than 50%, it is thought that it has a better chance of defeating Erdogan in the first round.

Recent opinion polls indicate that the race is once again open, whereas Erdogan had been significantly behind any potential rivals in the previous two years. Erdogan employs his appearances abroad, such as his role as a mediator between Russia and Ukraine in the grain deal and two prisoner swaps, to further his political goals.

Additionally, he receives endorsement for his aggressive approach to Finland and Sweden's requests to join NATO. Its popularity had previously been greatly impacted by the rapidly declining economic conditions brought on by inflation of over 80% and a severe loss in purchasing power.

Nevertheless, there is debate over Erdogan's eligibility to run for office again. In accordance with the constitution, the president is only permitted to serve a maximum of two terms, unless the parliament moves the election date forward with a three-fifths majority, i.e.

e. The second term is not regarded as finished because there are still 360 mandates to be fulfilled.

Since the opposition does not want to agree to the early dissolution of parliament, the AKP and MHP alliance, which only has 335 lawmakers, would need their votes in order to accomplish this. Since Erdogan is more well-liked than the AKP, it is unlikely that the AKP and MHP will gain a new majority in parliament, especially since it will be challenging for the MHP to surpass the seven percent threshold.

The opposition Six Alliance and the pro-kurdish hdp are expected to hold a majority in parliament, according to all polls.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the president of Turkey and the head of the AKP, has called for the May 14 date to be moved up for the parliamentary and presidential elections.