Ahead of the June 2015 general elections in Turkey, public debate on the government's stated purpose of replacing the current parliamentary system with a presidential government rages on. Attending a public event in Bursa on Friday, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) will need to claim 400 out of the total 550 seats in the Grand National Assembly in order to "create the new Turkey, draft a new constitution, institute a presidential system and complete the Kurdish reconciliation process." Meanwhile, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, who voiced support for a stronger presidency during a live television interview the previous evening, pointed out that constitutional reform must rest on principles instead of concentrating on individual politicians. Thus far, opposition parties have unanimously criticized the push for a presidential system, which they claim to signal the Erdoğan's authoritarian tendencies. The most recent move by the Republican People's Party (CHP), which has served as the country's main opposition party since 2002, however, suggests that demand for constitutional change does not exclusively come from the ruling party. While Mr. Davutoğlu throws his weight behind the presidential system, the CHP has begun experimenting with federalism.The opposition's most recent maneuver started with Veli Ağbaba, an opposition parliamentarian for the eastern province of Malatya and a CHP deputy chairman, holding a press conference at Parliament on Jan. 30, 2015 to announce that his party has asked CHP municipalities across the nation to officially recognize Alevi cemevis as houses of worship in order to render them eligible for the same level of financial support as mosques, churches and synagogues in Turkey. The Alevi houses of worship will receive funding from local governments, Turkish media reported. The reasoning behind the CHP's latest move strongly resembled earlier moves by municipalities affiliated with the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). "The central government did not take the necessary steps, which is why we launch the campaign at the local level," the CHP politician said.In the most recent local elections held on March 30, 2014, CHP candidates claimed 14 out of Turkey's 81 provinces. With the exception of Eskişehir and Burdur, the overwhelming majority of the main opposition party's small number of strongholds are located on the Western shoreline. A number of municipalities, including Edirne and Kırklareli, have since followed suit and passed resolutions from local assemblies to recognize Alevi houses of worship, Daily Sabah reported over the weekend. The act was not unprecedented either, according to leftist newspaper Radikal, the AK Party-controlled Sultanbeyli municipality had contributed TL 70,000 ($28,000) to the local Alevi house of worship back in June 2014.The most recent move by the CHP unmistakably represents an effort to consolidate the Alevi vote, which accounts for nearly 50 percent of the main opposition's electoral base, and fend off the AK Party's ongoing outreach campaign, which considering the government's commitment to the Kurdish reconciliation process, has gained some level of support among the Alevi community. The most interesting aspect of the CHP campaign, however, is that it represents a manifestation of the need for constitutional reform.Having suffered 10 consecutive losses in popular elections since the 2002 parliamentary race, the CHP leadership and the main opposition base have effectively lost all hope for running the country again in the foreseeable future. The frustration of young CHP supporters with the party's shortcomings was arguably one of the driving forces behind the 2013 Gezi Park protests. With pollsters projecting yet another landslide victory for the ruling AK Party, the situation looks all the more grim. The way out? Organizing at the municipal level and pushing for stronger local governments could help the opposition attain greater influence over the nation's affairs, which is why the latest push for the recognition of Alevi houses of worship is indicative of a broader shift toward federalism.