Turkey’s president for life wants to become Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
However, since this is not feasible—by circumventing every notion of (constitutional) legitimacy and democratic norms, as well as by fully instrumentalizing the institutions— the Turkish president is attempting to remain the “ruler” of Ankara for as long as possible.
A few days ago, the spokesperson for the ruling AKP, Ömer Çelik, announced that Mr. Erdoğan will be the party’s presidential candidate in the upcoming elections. What does this mean? That, in conjunction with the judicial coup that removed Özgür Özel from the leadership of the CHP (the Kemalist party of the official opposition) and reinstating Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, Mr. Erdoğan aims to remain in the presidency, without much difficulty, at least until 2033.
According to the Turkish constitution, a president is allowed a maximum of two terms, and the current president is seeking a fourth term—and, following the constitutional amendment, a third term— which creates “obstacles” for him.
In practice, Mr. Erdoğan has been in power since 2003, when he was elected prime minister. In 2014, he was elected president and was re-elected in 2018 and 2023. In 2017, a referendum was held, in which, by a narrow margin, the country’s political system was transformed from a parliamentary to a presidential one. Now serving his second term following the change in the system of government, the Turkish president is not eligible to run for re-election.
This “obstacle” can be circumvented in two ways: either through a constitutional amendment to the provision of the constitution that limits the president to two terms—though the necessary number of seats is not available—or by the Parliament calling for early elections.
The scenario of early elections has resurfaced strongly in the media of the neighboring country, as evidenced by the article in *The Guardian*. “Turkish elections are scheduled for 2028. However, many believe they may take place sooner. Nevertheless, by the time voters actually cast their ballots, the outcome may already have been decided—especially in light of recent events,” the British newspaper noted.
Some include, among other things, the upcoming legislation of the expansionist–revisionist doctrine of the “Blue Homeland” into Turkish domestic law, even though these are long-standing positions.
Furthermore, the day before yesterday, Mr. Erdoğan announced that he would soon submit a legislative framework to Parliament aimed at accelerating the dissolution of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). He added that he is determined to successfully complete the peace process with the PKK, putting an end to what he described as the Kurdish organization’s armed actions against the Turkish state.
