The research found that in an election without the Turkish president, the AKP’s vote drops to 13 percent.
According to BirGün writer Yaşar Aydın, “this once again reminded everyone of a situation that everyone knows but does not talk about, namely, that the AKP is only meaningful with Erdoğan.”
“This question will be voiced more and more as the election approaches. As things stand, Erdoğan cannot run again because he is in his second term. If we consider that every development, especially in the economy and foreign policy, is postponing the early election a little more, an election without Erdoğan is not that far away.
“It is not easy to say today whether AKP deputies will prefer an early election with Erdoğan and lose, or a normal election without Erdoğan and with hope for the future.”
The columnist also said that AKP coalition partner Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) is also facing similar difficulties.
“In fact, a similar situation applies to the MHP. Since its official foundation in February 1969, the MHP has been governed by only two chairmen. Devlet Bahçeli has been in the chair since 1997. It is seen that the health problems that Bahçeli has been experiencing in recent years have created certain problems in terms of active participation in politics. One of the important questions of the coming days will be whether the MHP will continue with Bahçeli or with a new name that Bahçeli has also indicated,” Aydın said.
Aydın also explained that the Turkish president and Bahçeli are “undoubtedly” the most important political figures in Turkey in the last 25 years, even if they spent the first fifteen years in conflict.
“To put it more clearly, they are directly responsible for the situation the country is in. Politics, even the country’s governance style, was built on these two names. The Presidential System of Government is nothing more than a dress sewn on these two names,” the Turkish journalist wrote. “One reason for the ruling party’s crises is that no serious preparations have been made for a period in which these names will not be present.”
He concludes his article by saying that due to the succession crisis in the ruling party, “he regime is trying to attack the opposition because it cannot find a solution. However, it is clear that the problem for the people is not just the names, but the system itself.”
“The people’s issue is with the one-man regime,” Aydın concluded.