Turkey's Pivotal Elections: Kurdish Vote Set to Play a Decisive Role
Shafaq News/ Turkey is on the verge of crucial presidential and legislative elections, scheduled for tomorrow, Sunday, with the Kurdish population in the country keeping a close eye on the outcome.
Representing approximately 20% of Turkey's population, Kurds are expected to play a key role in determining the balance of power in the country. Several political parties have been courting the Kurdish vote in hopes of securing their support and, ultimately, their electoral success.
Kemal K?l?çdaro?lu, leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) which founded the Republic of Turkey in 1923, has emerged as the strongest contender against President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an. In a historic turn of events, the CHP has managed to garner Kurdish support this time around, according to Sky News Arabia.
The pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) is the primary political representative for Kurds in Turkey and held the third-largest parliamentary bloc in the previous assembly. The party has decided to enter the legislative elections under the banner of the Left-Green Party, in order to avoid potential legal ramifications and allegations of being linked to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
Kurdish parties have formed an electoral alliance known as the "Labor and Freedom" coalition. Opinion polls suggest that this coalition is likely to secure between 10% and 12% of the vote, well above the required 7% electoral threshold. In the presidential race, the "Labor and Freedom" coalition has chosen to support the opposition candidate, Kemal K?l?çdaro?lu, from the Nation Alliance.
Kurdish backing for K?l?çdaro?lu has significantly impacted his popularity in Kurdish-majority provinces, with a recent poll conducted by the Ruvost Foundation indicating that nearly 63% of Kurds are expected to vote for the opposition candidate.
In the 2014 and 2018 elections, Erdo?an received approximately 40% of the votes in Kurdish provinces, but it appears unlikely that he will be able to maintain that level of support this time.
In case the ruling coalition loses its parliamentary majority, the HDP is poised to play a crucial role in forming the next government. Despite a historically uneasy relationship between the CHP and the Kurdish community, recent overtures by the CHP have resulted in a newfound closeness and mutual understanding based on shared interests in opposing the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Kurdish support for the opposition alliance comes with a "price tag" in the form of commitments to address longstanding Kurdish demands, many of which had been previously rejected. These demands, as outlined by Turkish political analyst Hisham Junay for Sky News Arabia, include the release of HDP leaders from prison, such as Selahattin Demirta? and businessman Osman Kavala; initiating a debate on the status of the Kurdish language; involving Kurds in the drafting of a new constitution if the opposition emerges victorious; broadening the concept of citizenship to encompass all ethnicities and minorities; and improving Turkey's human rights record in compliance with rulings from the European Court of Human Rights.
