Editing Elections in Turkey

{{Short description|none}}
[[File:Atatürk Airport ballot box 2.JPG|300px|thumb|Scene inside a polling station during the [[November 2015 Turkish general election|Turkish general election of 2015]]: a voter, election officials and a standard transparent [[ballot box]].]]{{Redirect|Turkey elections|elections where an undesirable "turkey" candidate is elected|Turkey-raising|elections where a literal [[Turkey (bird)|turkey]] has been elected|non-human electoral candidate}}{{Politics of Turkey}}
'''Elections in Turkey''' are held for six functions of [[Government of Turkey|government]]: [[History of Turkish presidential elections|presidential elections]] (national), [[Grand National Assembly of Turkey|parliamentary elections]] (national), [[Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey|municipality mayors]] (local), [[List of districts in Turkey|district mayors]] (local), [[Provinces of Turkey|provincial]] or [[List of municipalities in Turkey|municipal council members]] (local) and [[Muhtar (title)|muhtars]] (local). Apart from [[election]]s, [[Referendums in Turkey|referendums]] are also held occasionally.

The [[Parliamentary elections in Turkey|parliamentary elections]] are held every five years. The [[Grand National Assembly of Turkey|Parliament]] (''Meclis'') has 600 members, elected for a five-year term by a system based on [[closed list]] [[proportional representation]] according to the [[D'Hondt method]]. Political parties are subject to an [[electoral threshold]] of 7%. Smaller parties can avoid the electoral threshold by forming an [[Political alliance|alliance]] with bigger parties, in which it is sufficient that total votes of the alliance passes the 7%. [[Independent politician|Independent candidates]] are not subject to [[electoral threshold]].

The [[Turkish presidential elections|presidential elections]] are held every five years. The [[President of Turkey|president]] is elected for a term of office of five years and is eligible for one re-election. There is an exception when a president's second term ends prematurely through a decision of the [[Grand National Assembly of Turkey|Parliament]]. In this case, the president can be re-elected for a third term.

To put forward a referendum regarding [[constitutional amendment]]s, a [[supermajority]] (three fifths of the votes) in the parliament is required first. These kinds of referendums are binding.

Turkey has a [[multi-party system]], with two or three strong [[political parties|parties]] and often a fourth party that is electorally successful. Since 1950, parliamentary politics has mainly been dominated by [[Conservatism|conservative]] parties. Even the ruling [[Justice and Development Party (Turkey)|Justice and Development Party]] (AKP) tends to identify itself with the "tradition" of [[Democrat Party (Turkey, 1946–1961)|Democrat Party]] (DP). While on the left side of the spectrum, parties like [[Republican People's Party]] (CHP), [[Social Democratic Populist Party (Turkey)|Social Democratic Populist Party]] (SHP) and [[Democratic Left Party (Turkey)|Democratic Left Party]] (DSP) have enjoyed the largest electoral success.

The [[2017 Turkish constitutional referendum|constitutional referendum of 2017]] enhanced the powers of the president, and since 2018, the focus has shifted from parliamentary to the presidential elections.<ref>{{cite book |last=Carkoglu |first=Ali |date=2022 |editor-last=Schultz |editor-first=Toplak |title=Routledge Handbook of Election Law |publisher=Routledge |pages=247–256 |chapter=Chapter 21: Election Law in Turkey |isbn=9781138393363}}</ref>

== Schedule ==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! colspan="8" | Past
! colspan="4" |Future
|-
!  2017 !! 2018 !! 2019 !! 2020 !! 2021 !! 2022 !! 2023 
!2024!! 2025 !! 2026 !! 2027 !! 2028
|-
| [[2017 Turkish constitutional referendum|Constitutional<br />referendum]]
| [[2018 Turkish general election|General]]<br />([[2018 Turkish parliamentary election|parliamentary]] & <br />[[2018 Turkish presidential election|presidential]])
| [[2019 Turkish local elections|Local]]
| None
| None
| None
| [[2023 Turkish general election|General]]<br />([[2023 Turkish parliamentary election|parliamentary]] & <br />[[2023 Turkish presidential election|presidential]])
|'''[[2024 Turkish local elections|Local]]'''
| ''None''
| ''None''
| ''None''
| ''[[2028 Turkish general election|General]]<br />([[2028 Turkish parliamentary election|parliamentary]] & <br />[[2028 Turkish presidential election|presidential]])''
|-
|}
* '''Bold''': latest elections, ''italic'': upcoming elections

==List of elections==
===Presidential elections===
{{main|Turkish presidential elections}}

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Date !! Election !! Notes
|-

| 29 October 1923 || [[1923 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Mustafa Kemal Atatürk]] was elected founding president.
|-
| 1 November 1927 || [[1927 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Mustafa Kemal Atatürk]] re-elected
|-
| 4 May 1931 || [[1931 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Mustafa Kemal Atatürk]] re-elected
|-
| 1 March 1935 || [[1935 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Mustafa Kemal Atatürk]] re-elected
|-
| 11 November 1938 || [[1938 Turkish presidential election]] || [[İsmet İnönü]] succeeded Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
|-
| 3 April 1939 || [[1939 Turkish presidential election]] || [[İsmet İnönü]] re-elected
|-
| 8 March 1943 || [[1943 Turkish presidential election]] || [[İsmet İnönü]] re-elected
|-
| 5 June 1946|| [[1946 Turkish presidential election]] || [[İsmet İnönü]] re-elected
|-
| 22 May 1950 || [[1950 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Celâl Bayar]] succeeded İsmet İnönü
|-
| 14 May 1954 || [[1954 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Celâl Bayar]] re-elected
|-
| 1 November 1957 || [[1957 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Celâl Bayar]] re-elected
|-
| 26 October 1961 || [[1961 Turkish presidential election]] || After the 1961 coup, [[Cemal Gürsel]] was elected president.
|-
| 28 March 1966 || [[1966 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Cevdet Sunay]] succeeded Cemal Gürsel
|-
| 6 April 1973 || [[1973 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Fahri Korutürk]] succeeded Cevdet Sunay
|-
| 12 March 1980 || [[1980 Turkish presidential election]] || Parties failed to elect a president, [[1980 Turkish coup d'état|1980 coup d'état]] ensued
|-
| 31 October 1989 || [[1989 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Turgut Özal]] succeeded Kenan Evren
|-
| 16 May 1993 || [[1993 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Süleyman Demirel]] succeeded Turgut Özal
|-
| 5 May 2000 || [[2000 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Ahmet Necdet Sezer]] succeeded Süleyman Demirel
|-
| 28 August 2007 || [[2007 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Abdullah Gül]] succeeded Ahmet Necdet Sezer
|-
| 10 August 2014 || [[2014 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Recep Tayyip Erdoğan]] succeeded Abdullah Gül
|-
| 24 June 2018 || [[2018 Turkish presidential election]] || [[Recep Tayyip Erdoğan]] re-elected
|-
|28 May 2023
|[[2023 Turkish presidential election]]
|[[Recep Tayyip Erdoğan]] re-elected
|}

===Parliamentary elections===
{{Main|Parliamentary elections in Turkey}}
The following sections give list of key results.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://secim.bugun.com.tr/secim/ |title=Türkiye 2015 Genel Seçim Sonuçları |access-date=2015-06-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150609000420/http://secim.bugun.com.tr/secim |archive-date=2015-06-09 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

At first, [[Turkey]] had a unicameral legislature, with the main chamber being the [[Grand National Assembly of Turkey]]. This lasted until 1961, when the new [[Turkish Constitution of 1961|Constitution of 1961]] replaced the previous unicameral (one house) system with a [[bicameral]] (two house) one. The [[Grand National Assembly of Turkey|Grand National Assembly]] was downgraded to the position of the lower house whilst the newly founded [[Senate of the Republic (Turkey)|Senate of the Republic]] became the upper house. However, the [[Turkish Constitution of 1982|constitution of 1982]] abolished the Senate and Turkey once again adopted a unicameral system.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Date !! Election
|-
|21 July 1946 || [[1946 Turkish general election]]
|-
|14 May 1950 || [[1950 Turkish general election]]
|-
|2 May 1954 || [[1954 Turkish general election]]
|-
|27 October 1957 || [[1957 Turkish general election]]
|-
|15 October 1961 || [[1961 Turkish general election]]
|-
|10 October 1965 || [[1965 Turkish general election]]
|-
|12 October 1969 || [[1969 Turkish general election]]
|-
|14 October 1973 || [[1973 Turkish general election]]
|-
|5 June  1977 || [[1977 Turkish general election]]
|-
|6 November 1983 ||  [[1983 Turkish general election]]
|-
|29 October 1987 || [[1987 Turkish general election]]
|-
|20 October 1991 || [[1991 Turkish general election]]
|-
|25 December 1995 || [[1995 Turkish general election]]
|-
|18 April 1999 || [[1999 Turkish general election]]
|-
|3 November 2002 || [[2002 Turkish general election]]
|-
|22 July 2007 || [[2007 Turkish general election]]
|-
|12 June 2011 || [[2011 Turkish general election]]
|-
|7 June 2015 || [[June 2015 Turkish general election|2015 Turkish general election (Jun)]]
|-
|1 November 2015 || [[November 2015 Turkish general election|2015 Turkish general election (Nov)]]
|-
|24 June 2018 || [[2018 Turkish general election]] 
|-
|14 May 2023 || [[2023 Turkish general election]]
|}

=== Senate elections 1961–80 ===
{| class="wikitable"
! Date !! Election
|-
|15 October 1961 || [[1961 Turkish senate elections]]
|-
|7 June 1964 || [[1964 Turkish senate elections]]
|-
|5 June 1966 || [[1966 Turkish senate elections]]
|-
|2 June 1968 || [[1968 Turkish senate elections]]
|-
|14 October 1973 || [[1973 Turkish senate elections]]
|-
|12 October 1975 || [[1975 Turkish senate elections]]
|-
|7 June 1977 || [[1977 Turkish senate elections]]
|-
|14 October 1979 || [[1979 Turkish senate elections]] 
|}

===Local elections===
The [[Administrative divisions of Turkey|Turkish administrative system]] defines three different district types for local elections: [[Villages of Turkey|villages]], [[Cities of Turkey|cities]] and [[Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey|metropolitan cities]]. The difference between cities and metropolitan cities derives from the size of the [[population]]. Cities with more than 750,000 residents are labeled as metropolitan cities while the rest are simply called cities. There are 31 metropolitan cities and 50 cities across Turkey, and voters in both will have a total of four votes. Citizens have the opportunity to vote for the following offices, depending on the type of area they reside:<ref name="LocalTRT">{{cite news |title=Seven facts to know about Turkey's local elections |url=https://www.trtworld.com/turkey/seven-facts-to-know-about-turkey-s-local-elections-25366 |access-date=30 April 2021 |date=29 March 2019 |language=en}}</ref>

{{Col-begin}}
{{Col-3}}
People living in [[Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey|metropolitan cities]]:
* Metropolitan municipality mayor
* District mayor
* Municipal council members
* [[Muhtar (title)|Muhtar]]
{{Col-3}}
People living in [[Cities of Turkey|cities]]:
* Mayor 
* Municipal council members
* Provincial assembly members 
* [[Muhtar (title)|Muhtar]]
{{Col-3}}
People living in [[Villages of Turkey|villages]]:
* Provincial assembly members
* [[Muhtar (title)|Muhtar]]
{{Col-end}}

This is a summary of the past local elections:

* [[1930 Turkish local elections]]
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 502 municipalities
** [[Liberal Republican Party (Turkey)|SCF]]: 40 municipalities
* [[1934 Turkish local elections]]
* [[1938 Turkish local elections]]
* [[1942 Turkish local elections]]
* [[1946 Turkish local elections]]
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 54.65%
** [[Democrat Party (Turkey, historical)|DP]]: 43.35%
* [[1950 Turkish local elections]] – September 3, 1950
** [[Democrat Party (Turkey, 1946–1961)|DP]]: 560 municipalities
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 40 municipalities
* [[1955 Turkish local elections]]
* [[1963 Turkish local elections]] – November 17, 1963
** [[Justice Party (Turkey)|AP]]: 45.48%
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 36.22%
** [[New Turkey Party (1961)|YTP]]: 6.51%
** [[Nation Party (Turkey, 1962)|MP]]: 3.09%
** [[Nationalist Movement Party|CKMP]]: 3.06%
** [[Workers' Party of Turkey (1961)|TİP]]: 0.4%
** ...others
* [[1968 Turkish local elections]] – June 2, 1968
** [[Justice Party (Turkey)|AP]]: 49.06%
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 27.9%
** [[Republican Reliance Party|GP]]: 6.62%
** [[Nation Party (Turkey, 1962)|MP]]: 3.5%
** [[Workers' Party of Turkey (1961)|TİP]]: 2.72%
** [[Unity Party (Turkey)|BP]]: 1.64%
** ...others
* [[1973 Turkish local elections]] – December 9, 1973
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 37.09%
** [[Justice Party (Turkey)|AP]]: 32.32%
** [[Democratic Party (Turkey, 1970)|DP]]: 10.75%
** [[National Salvation Party|MSP]]: 6.2%
** [[Republican Reliance Party|CGP]]: 2.9%
** [[Nationalist Movement Party|MHP]]: 1.33%
** ...others
* [[1977 Turkish local elections]] – December 11, 1977
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 41.73%
** [[Justice Party (Turkey)|AP]]: 37.1%
** [[National Salvation Party|MSP]]: 6.91%
** [[Nationalist Movement Party|MHP]]: 6.62%
** [[Democratic Party (Turkey, 1970)|DP]]: 1.0%
** ...others
* [[1984 Turkish local elections]] – March 25, 1984
** [[Motherland Party (Turkey)|ANAP]]: 41.52%
** [[SODEP]]: 23.35%
** [[True Path Party|DYP]]: 13.25%
** [[People's Party (Turkey)|HP]]: 8.76%
** [[Nationalist Democracy Party|MDP]]: 7.09%
** [[Welfare Party|RP]]: 4.4%
** Independent: 1.63%
* [[1989 Turkish local elections]] – March 26, 1989
** [[Social Democratic Populist Party (Turkey)|SHP]]: 28.69%
** [[True Path Party|DYP]]: 25.13%
** [[Motherland Party (Turkey)|ANAP]]: 21.8%
** [[Welfare Party|RP]]: 9.8%
** [[Democratic Left Party (Turkey)|DSP]]: 9.03%
** [[Nationalist Movement Party|MHP]]: 4.14%
** ...others
* [[1994 Turkish local elections]] – March 27, 1994
** [[True Path Party|DYP]]: 21.41%
** [[Motherland Party (Turkey)|ANAP]]: 21.09%
** [[Welfare Party|RP]]: 19.14%
** [[Social Democratic Populist Party (Turkey)|SHP]]: 13.53%
** [[Democratic Left Party (Turkey)|DSP]]: 8.75%
** [[Nationalist Movement Party|MHP]]: 7.95%
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 4.61%
** ...others
* [[1999 Turkish local elections]] – April 18, 1999
** [[Democratic Left Party (Turkey)|DSP]]: 18.7%
** [[Nationalist Movement Party|MHP]]: 17.17%
** [[Virtue Party|FP]]: 16.48%
** [[Motherland Party (Turkey)|ANAP]]: 15.03%
** [[True Path Party|DYP]]: 13.21%
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 11.08%
** ...others
* [[2004 Turkish local elections]] – March 28, 2004
** [[Justice and Development Party (Turkey)|AKP]]: 41.6%
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 18.2%
** [[Nationalist Movement Party|MHP]]: 10.4%
** [[True Path Party (Turkey)|DYP]]: 9.9%
* [[2009 Turkish local elections]] – March 22, 2009
** [[Justice and Development Party (Turkey)|AKP]]: 38.99%
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 23.23%
** [[Nationalist Action Party (Turkey)|MHP]]: 16.13%
** ...others
* [[2014 Turkish local elections]] – March 30, 2014
** [[Justice and Development Party (Turkey)|AKP]]: 43.31%
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 25.59%
** [[Nationalist Action Party (Turkey)|MHP]]: 17.63%
** ...others
* [[2019 Turkish local elections]] – March 31, 2019
** [[Justice and Development Party (Turkey)|AKP]]: 44.32%
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 30.10%
** [[Good Party|İYİ]]: 7.45%
** ...others
* [[2024 Turkish local elections]] - March 31, 2024
** [[Republican People's Party|CHP]]: 37.77%
** [[Justice and Development Party (Turkey)|AKP]]: 35.49%
** [[New Welfare Party|YRP]]: 6.19%
** ...others

===By-elections===
If too many seats become vacant in the parliament or if elections in a district is not properly conducted, then a by-election is required to take place. 
* 1936 Turkish parliamentary by-elections
* 1945 Turkish parliamentary by-elections
* 1947 Turkish parliamentary by-elections
* 1948 Turkish parliamentary by-elections
* 1949 Turkish parliamentary by-elections
* 1951 Turkish parliamentary by-elections
* 1966 Turkish parliamentary by-elections
* 1968 Turkish parliamentary by-elections
* 1975 Turkish parliamentary by-elections
* 1979 Turkish parliamentary by-elections
* [[1986 Turkish parliamentary by-elections]]
* [[2003 Siirt Province by-election|2003 Turkish parliamentary by-elections]]

===Referendums===
{{main|Referendums in Turkey}}
{| class="wikitable"
! Date !! Referendum
|-
|9 July 1961 || [[1961 Turkish constitutional referendum]]
|-
|7 November 1982 || [[1982 Turkish constitutional referendum]]
|-
|6 September 1987 || [[1987 Turkish constitutional referendum]]
|-
|25 September 1988  || [[1988 Turkish constitutional referendum]]
|-
|21 October 2007 || [[2007 Turkish constitutional referendum]]
|-
|12 September 2010 || [[2010 Turkish constitutional referendum]]
|-
|16 April 2017 || [[2017 Turkish constitutional referendum]]
|}

==Voter turnout==
The [[voter turnout]] for the average of 18 parliamentary election is 81.4%; of the local elections is 78.7% and of the referendums is 83.1%. Turkey relatively has a high voter turnout rate comparing to modern democracies. The participation rate in Turkey is also higher than the participation rates in countries where [[compulsory voting]] is loosely applied. With the exception of 1960–1970, voter turnout rate in Turkey is above the world average from 1950 to the present in Turkey.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Çaylak |first1=Adem |title=Voter turnout in Turkey: a cross-national comparison |journal=Journal of International Social Research |date=25 October 2017 |volume=10 |issue=52 |pages=352–351 |doi=10.17719/jisr.2017.1897 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/320629800 |access-date=30 April 2021 |language=en|doi-access=free }}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Voter turnout at parliamentary elections [1950-2023]
! 1950 !! 1954 !! 1957 !! 1961 !! 1965 !! 1969 !! 1973 !! 1977 !! 1983 !! 1987
|-
| 89.3% || 88.6% || 76.6% || 81.4% || 71.3% || 64.3% || 66.8% || 72.4% || 92.3% || 93.3%
|-
! 1991 !! 1995 !! 1999 !! 2002 !! 2007 !! 2011 !! 2015 !! 2018 !! 2023
|-
| 83.9% || 85.2% || 87.1% || 79.1% || 84.2% || 83.2% || 85.2% || 86.2% || 87.1%
|}

==See also==
* [[Censorship in Turkey]]
* [[Democracy in the Middle East and North Africa#Turkey|Democracy in Turkey]]
* [[Democratic backsliding by country – Asia#Turkey|Democratic backsliding in Turkey]]
* [[List of cabinets of Turkey]]
* [[Multi-party period of the Republic of Turkey]]
* [[Parliamentary terms of Turkey]]
* [[Government of Turkey]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==

* Toros, Emre. Electoral Integrity in Turkey. United Kingdom, Edinburgh University Press, 2024.

==External links==
* [https://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/turkey Elections in Turkey - Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)]
* [https://www.ysk.gov.tr/ Supreme Election Council]

{{Turkish elections|state=expanded}}
{{Asia topic|Elections in}}
{{Elections in Europe}}
{{Turkey topics}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elections In Turkey}}
[[Category:Elections in Turkey| ]]