ABSTRACT

While the Justice and Development Party (AKP) has dominated Turkish politics for a decade and a half, recent years have seen a qualitative change, culminating in the 2017 referendum on the move to a presidential system. This volume focuses on the later years of AKP rule after the first direct presidential election in 2014. It shows how during this period the AKP has changed the political system and societal dynamics, maintained its electoral predominance, and ultimately opened the way for regime change. This collection of key chapters offers indispensable reading for everyone who wants to understand current Turkish politics and the continued hegemony of the AKP in the country’s political life.

Chapters 2–10 previously published as articles (Vol 19: issue 2 to Vol 22: issue 3) in South European Society and Politics.

chapter |13 pages

Introduction

The AKP on the Road to Presidentialism
BySusannah Verney, Anna Bosco, Senem Aydın-Düzgit

chapter |13 pages

AKP at the Crossroads: Erdoğan's Majoritarian Drift

ByErgun Özbudun

chapter |19 pages

Winds of Change? The June 2015 Parliamentary Election in Turkey

ByÖzge Kemahlıoğlu

chapter |20 pages

Taking Sides: Determinants of Support for a Presidential System in Turkey

ByS. Erdem Aytaç, Ali Çarkoğlu, Kerem Yıldırım

chapter |24 pages

A Small Yes for Presidentialism: The Turkish Constitutional Referendum of April 2017

ByBerk Esen, Şebnem Gümüşçü