The Turkish Presidency will go to a run off poll to elect a new president on 28th of May. Neither President Erdogan nor the main opposition candidate, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, managed to secure a majority – with 49.51 per cent and 44.88 per cent of votes respectively. The third candidate, nationalist Sinan Ogan, took just over 5% of the vote.
Mr Erdogan and Mr Kilicdaroglu are now predicted to be vying for the nationalist vote, with many predicting that both candidates will now ramp up their nationalist rhetoric. Mr Ogan has not yet endorsed any candidate; however, the ultra-nationalist has said he will only back Mr Kilicdaroglu’s opposition alliance if they don’t include the predominantly pro-Kurdish socialist Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), which is one of the six parties in the alliance.
In the parliamentary vote, President Erdogan’s party lost some seats but can still retain a majority along with the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), which gained 50 seats. 64 million people were eligible to vote, with a record turnout of 89%.
Mr Ogan is now essentially the kingmaker and, with only 5% of the vote, he can now influence the outcome and direction of this election. This vote is a massive step forward for nationalism; even with a small percentage of the vote, a nationalist candidate now has immense power. It’s also interesting to note that the larger the turnout out on an election day, the better nationalist candidates do.
This result does make all those “there’s no political solution” naysayers seem rather silly. When people get out and vote, they vote for nationalists – they vote for their Homeland.
