Turkey’s Elections Were So Much More Than Just Istanbul and Ankara

Hope renews in Asia Minor as the memory of Ataturk refuses to die.

First impressions are key

When I first arrived in Turkey, now Turkiye, the first thing I saw was a farmer pulling a cart with a tired camel asleep in the back. It was at a bus stop in Nazilli, western Turkiye, and I was nearing the end of a ten-hour bus trip from Istanbul to Denizli. I was tired, hungover, and had no idea where I was going.

Nazilli was the bus's final stop before Denizli and was the perfect place to get my first real sense of Turkiye. I had just come from a megacity on a modern bus with internet, catering, restrooms, and movies on demand. It was safe to say that Turkish buses were a lot better than those in Ireland and dare I say some of Europe. But as I stepped off the bus, all groggy and hungover, the first thing I saw was a dusty city, with the call to prayer echoing through the markets and an exasperated farmer trying to tow his fed-up camel. It was a perfect juxtaposition.

I knew then and there that I was going to fit right in.

My Knowledge of Turkey

Before I arrived, I knew about as much as the man on the street regarding Turkiye. I knew about Istanbul and the beaches. I also knew that there had just been a Government crackdown in a place called Gezi Park and that their president was no longer the golden boy of the West. I didn’t care. I came for the job. A teaching gig in a random city called Denizli. I figured, ‘Turkey is a democracy. If they want change, they’ll just vote him out.’ How western of me.

My First election

A couple of weeks before the 2014 presidential election, the government shut down social media for about a week. I didn't know why, but I do remember that I complained a lot to my adult students in the language course. They seemed just as exasperated by what was going on in their country as I was and hope sprung eternal as the 2014 election approached.

I remember the night well. We sat around watching the news as the votes came in and low and behold, Mr. Erdogan won. I was shocked. ‘How could he get 51% of the votes? Don’t the people want or even like free speech?’ was my mantra for the night.

I was in a young and dumb bubble and failed to realize what the average Turk prioritizes. Hint: It’s not religion although it’s high on the list.

Understanding the AKP/Erdogan supporter.

They are not dumb. They are not evil. They are, like most on God’s green earth, good people. Ask any central Anatolian around Konya, what they want for their community and they’ll simply say, “Good roads, good schools, markets, community, jobs, Mosques, and stability.” Sound familiar? I mean, replace the word mosque with church, synagogue, or Hindu temple and it could be one of anyone on this green and wonderful earth. Hell, that’s what I want. I have nothing against having a place of worship in my town.

And for over 20 years, Mr. Erdogan delivered.

Context

Last year, Mr Erdogan won another term as the country's president. The opposition’s candidate, CHP’s Kemal Kilicdaroglu, lost. In my humble opinion, he never should have been the man to run. A much better option would have been the mayor of Istanbul Ekrem Imamoglu or the mayor of Ankara, Mansur Yavas. Both men are from the CHP (People's Republican Party) and are almost as popular with the folk as Mr. Erdogan, but having them run would’ve meant vacating their prime positions as mayors of two of the country's most important metropolises.

Blame Game

To put the blame of Turkiye’s tragic economic state solely at the feet of Mr. Erdogan may seem unfair, but, some say he was the one who pushed for this one-man rule presidency. While he did lift Turkey up during the 2000s, he is now the man taking the heat for high inflation and an ever-weakening lira. Personally, I don’t blame any one person. I don’t know enough about the ins and outs of Government to wield such an opinion publicly.

Economy on the street

For the past two years at least, bread, oil, rice, and other essentials have gone through the roof for people of modest income and local elections are the perfect time for the so-called swing voter to have their say and send a message directly to the president through the ballot box of Turkey’s robust democracy.

I’m sorry but if I am feeling inflation then so are 90% of the people in this country.

Present day — Voting day for the local elections.

As my wife and I embarked on the short walk to the local school to cast her vote, I was struck by how hot it was outside. March had been chilly and oftentimes rainy, and it felt good to have the hot Antoliam sun kiss our wintered skin.

My wife grew up in this neighborhood and attended the high school where she would cast her vote. Voting in Turkey has always been a pleasant experience for me despite the gravity of what’s at stake. Today was the same. There were men selling fruit outside the school. Generations of families came together to have their say. There was talk on social media of a few flare-ups in the east of the country but in Denizli, it was respectful and peaceful.

You had the conservative AKP supporters mixing with liberal CHP supporters. Everyone just wanted to place their vote, have a chit-chat with their neighbors, and go home to watch the results.

It was almost festive.

I accompanied my wife into the school and greeted my mother-in-law at the gate. My mother-in-law is a staunch CHP supporter and volunteers to keep guard at the voting stations to make sure there’s no foul play while the count is on. She is 4 foot 2 inches. The school was a typical high school and order was the word of the day as the community had its say.

My wife signed in and lined up as I waited by the door.

“All done?” I asked.

“Yep!” She bounced.

“Who’d you vote for?” I jested.

“The Communists!” She joyously joked.

“Really? Things that bad, huh?”

“Well, if I can’t have money then no one can!” She laughed.

We went back outside and kissed the family goodbye. We wanted to be alone tonight, relaxed and silent in our home with our beers and popcorn.

On our way home, we passed by a young man on the phone who said, “I voted AKP only because of Erdogan. I only voted for them because Erdogan is my father.” — Many young men view Mr. Erdogan as a father figure.

That says a lot for the esteem half of Turkey holds Mr. Erdogan in but it’s a sad indicator for where the AKP is headed.

The Vote

“Love come quick!” My wife has just finished brushing her hair after a late-night shower.

“What is it?” She scampers back in.

“Did we win in Denizli?” She asks.

“Babe, I think we won everywhere!” I cried out.

She looked at me and then started running around the apartment with tears in her eyes. She reminded me of a cute kitten with the zoomies.

“We gotta go downtown!” I stood up and grabbed my Ataturk flag. I hadn’t felt this alive or proud in so long.

“Ok, let me get changed.”

And with that, we made our way to the city center. Last year, the AKP celebrated loudly. Now it was our turn to flag wave and get excited about the future.

As we made our way down the promenade I began to learn more about my wife. She only ever got excited about helping her students, burgers, and cuddles. But tonight she had tears in her eyes because her hero Seniz Dogan had been re-elected as our local municipality mayor. I could see why my wife identified with her. Seniz is graceful, educated, and well-spoken and she cares. The fact that a woman in the opposition had been re-elected was a huge deal. Yes, a man won the mayoral race for all of the city but we were still proud of Seniz. In fact, we saw many women take mayoral positions for the opposition.

As we made our way down the bustling streets, the cars beeped with every wave of my flag as children, men, women (with and without head scarfs) and a random Irish man celebrated the future with his beautiful wife.

Last year, it felt like the mono culture won. This year, the diversity of Turkey reared its beautiful head.

The party atmosphere was rife and thousands were there. The internet in the city center had been blocked for reasons I haven’t fully grasped but we didn’t care. We all knew where to meet.

The CHP won the mayoral election for Denizli but also for all the smaller municipalities like Seniz Dogan’s. Istanbul, Antalya, Bodrum, Izmir, and Ankara get all the press but for the opposition to gain such unbelievable traction in a small, usually conservative, city like Denizli is a true testament to the people’s power and the unrelenting appetite for some semblance of change.

Hopefully, the government will receive this message loud and clear but what changes can be made to rescue the country that does not include the IMF is beyond my little mind.

The ease at which I settled into such a terrible economy sometimes keeps me up at night. We need a sturdy ladder out of this hole

But as long as the memory of Ataturk remains, there will always be democracy in Turkiye.

What next?

Well, we go back to work. There are still bills to be paid and jobs to be worked. The people did their part. Now it’s the politician's turn. All of them. CHP, AKP, HDP, and the IYI Party all need to prove to their respective local electorate that they can deliver on at least a local level.

‘We’ indeed. But moving forward, ‘we’ should not just mean CHP supporters but also encompass all the people of Turkiye. This is a country that needs to come together more than ever. We are all one. I have broken bread with the staunchest of Erdogan supporters and they are just as friendly, loving, and gifted as anyone else. Just because their views are different and they vote differently does not mean that democracy is not for them too. We need to remember this. The economy is harming them too.

The opposition needs to prove that there will not be a return to the 90s where anyone with a headscarf was ghosted or had it ripped from their head.

You see, there was a reason for the rise of the AKP. It did not happen in a vacuum. We need to treat everyone with respect.

Yes, hope is the word of the day, and gratitude that everything went OK. Peace, love, and respect for our fellow man need to be the mantra going forward.

For all that has happened during the last ten years, from terrorism to coups, I still have hope. Hope that these people get what they deserve: A chance to live in an economically stable country.

They deserve it, from the Erdogan supporters to the CHP supporters and that exasperated farmer in Nazilli dragging his camel, they deserve more than what has happened in the last 10 years.

Hell, even I deserve it.

Travel hard and travel far my friends, but don’t forget to vote.

I have been Peter Murphy and, as of right now, democracy is alive and well in Turkey.