Election 2011

Before we left for the trip to Turkey we had a group meeting and Elif told us that there was going to be an election during the time that we were in Istanbul. She prefaced it by saying that everyone knew which party was going to win, as if we knew too. Then she corrected herself and said, well I know who is going to win. We all chuckled, but then I thought to myself that I really knew nothing about the government in Turkey. I now know that the Republic of Turkey is a Parliamentary Republic founded by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in 1923. I think Americans have a stereotype that all Middle Eastern countries are run by corrupt governments ruled by dishonest leaders so I was curious to see if Turkey would be the same. I was excited to learn more about the government of Turkey and how and by whom it is run.

From our book we read, Crescent and Star by Stephen Kinzer, I did learn that much of the government has been very corrupt in the past, ruled and suppressed behind the scenes by militant groups, not allowing different political parties to come into play. However, since 1923 when Ataturk came into power and the Ottoman Empire finally came to a close, the Turkish government seems to be improving rapidly.

In America when the presidential election comes around we all know that that campaigns get a little out of hand, but we only have two dominant parties running so it is not that bad. The commercials, by the end, become unbearable and soon the person you are going to vote for even becomes annoying. From the eight days that I have been in Turkey I am already sick of the election campaigns and I have not even turned on the television. It seems that on every street corner, filling every space, and hanging from every tall building there is a campaign sign for a specific party.

There is the AKParti, which is the party Elif was referring to who is going to win. There is also the Republican's People's Party (CHP), which is the largest other party that might have a chance, and then several other parties, like the Turkish Socialist Party (TSP), along with those two main groups. The billboards of these men are hilarious! Some are smiling way too ridiculously, while most are looking seriously into a random space. Not only are the billboards plastered on every wall and building, then there are these vans that ride around blasting Turkish music campaigning for a specific party. Every time one of these vans drives by it is insanely loud, almost like when an ambulance drives by, but much louder. These vans disturb much of the peace in the areas that they are passing by, but they only there for a second, creating noise pollution, but not much else. The people also hold rallies all the time in support for their party of choice, but there are always protesters there supporting the other party too. We have been trying to avoid getting handed fliers because we don’t want to waste their time since we can’t vote, or read Turkish.

It is interesting when we enter a different part of town and the campaign signs change to a different party. It shows that not just around the entire country, but solely in Istanbul there are many different opinions associated with the election. In one neighborhood we saw several AKParti campaign posters that had been ripped down by residents in the area that did not support them. All the parties also have flags everywhere, each having their own symbols and colors on it, to show pride for what you believe in. Many of the younger people that we have talked to said that they are voting for the CHP, although it seems like not enough to make them win. Our tour guide was telling us that the AKParti, which is party that is in power now, will win because many people like what they are doing, and may not be educated enough to see some of the corrupt things they may be doing. So next Sunday we will see what the outcomes are to the election and see if anything is going to change soon.