Elections in Turkey: pro-Kurdish HDP party calls for a vote for Kemal Kiliçdaroglu

Nation Alliance candidate Kemal Kiliçdaroglu, here at a rally in Tekirdag, April 27, 2023, is counting on strong support. AP - Francisco Seco

Text by: RFI Follow

2 min

This is a strong support for Kemal Kiliçdaroglu, Recep Tayyip Erdogan's main rival in the May 14 presidential election in Turkey. Just over two weeks before the election, the opposition camp is strengthening.

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The HDP, whose 2018 presidential candidate finished third with 8.4% of the votes cast, is considered the kingmaker of the presidential election. At the end of March, the left-wing pro-Kurdish Labour and Freedom alliance to which the HDP belongs had already given tacit support to Kemal Kiliçdaroglu by renouncing to present a presidential candidate. This time, it is an official endorsement, even a voting instruction. A call all the more important as the election promises to be close, observes our correspondent in Istanbul, Anne Andlauer. The HDP electorate, which is generally quite disciplined, has a good opinion of Kemal Kiliçdaroglu, who is considered more open on the Kurdish question.

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Our objectives coincide (...). That's why we decided to support Kiliçdaroglu," HDP co-chairman Mithat Sancar said in an interview published on Friday by the daily Sözcü. "To get the country out of this darkness, we need to get rid of this one-man regime," he added.

► Read also: Kemal Kiliçdaroglu, the "Turkish Gandhi" against Erdogan

The HDP's objective is clear: to ensure the victory of Kemal Kiliçdaroglu in the first round, on May 14. Because on that day, there will actually be two elections: a presidential and legislative elections in one round. If power wins the legislative elections and the presidential election requires a second round, the opposition believes that Kemal Kiliçdaroglu will have less chance of winning. Recep Tayyip Erdogan will indeed be able to stir up fears of instability between a president and a parliament of opposite political sides. The hypothesis of a second round is real, because Recep Tayyip Erdogan will face not one, but three opposition candidates on May 14.

The HDP is accused by the Turkish government of being linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), an armed group described as "terrorist" by Ankara and its Western allies. Selahattin Demirtas, its figurehead, has himself been imprisoned since late 2016 for "terrorist propaganda". Under threat of ban, the pro-Kurdish party will put forward candidates in the general elections under the banner of the Green Left Party.

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And with AFP)

Turks in Germany have started voting

With our correspondent in Berlin, Pascal Thibaut

Since Friday, and until May 9, 3.4 million Turks living abroad have the opportunity to vote for the presidential and legislative elections. The 1.5 million voters who live in Germany may not weigh heavily on paper, but if they score closely, they can make a difference. Five years ago, two-thirds of them voted for Recep Tayyip Erdogan, compared to 53% of voters in Turkey.

This year, the score in favour of the outgoing president looks less generous in Germany. Recep Tayyip Erdogan nevertheless retains many supporters. "Turkey has modernized enormously thanks to him; He's going to win again," one woman predicted. "Everyone says you have to be against him. It's suspicious. He can't be that bad," one man wondered. The political and economic situation in their country, the criticized management of the recent earthquake by Ankara also arouse criticism here. And they focus on Erdogan, who has been in power for 20 years. "A change would be good for Turkey," said one voter. "Let's hope that democracy finally returns to Turkey," said another.

Election rallies for these elections are banned in Germany. But Turkish organizations, mosques and other structures allow the various forces involved to campaign.

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• Turkey
• Recep Tayyip Erdogan