The aftershocks of Turkey’s ruling AK Party suffering its first ballot box defeat in 22 years are still being felt across the country, after the 31 March local election results.
Many feel this marks a turning point in Turkish politics after CHP (Republican People's Party) jumped over President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s party into pole position.
Disappointed and upset with the outcome, Erdoğan chaired the meeting of the Central Executive Committee of AK Party, the highest decision-making body of the party, which discussed election results.
It was closed to the press, but according to AK sources present, the president called it “not only a loss of votes, but a loss of spirit and blood”.
Erdoğan and his AK Party continue to hold meetings, discuss reports, and conduct interviews to find out what went wrong. The CHP, meanwhile, has started to solidify its victory by fulfilling its election promises.
High inflation, with its knock-on effect on the Turkish people, is cited as one of the major reasons for the AK Party’s failure.
In recent days Erdoğan has repeated that, as of the second half of this year, Turkey will see a decline in inflation.
The relatively low voter turnout 78%, in a country that usually sees close to 90%, has been a matter of debate, with analysts discussing which party’s voters stayed away.
President Erdoğan felt that it was mostly resentful AK Party voters who stayed away, which is partly true.
