The People's Alliance, led by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, emerged victorious in the May 14 elections. The alliance secured a majority in the 600-seat Parliament with 323 deputies, while Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's Nation Alliance remained with 218 deputies.

In the presidential race, Erdoğan received 49.5% of the votes, falling short by a narrow margin of 0.5%. Kılıçdaroğlu obtained 44.8% of the votes, and Sinan Oğan, the third candidate, received 5.13%. Since no candidate surpassed the 50% threshold, the second round of elections will be held this Sunday.

Entering his 21st year in government, Erdoğan, who achieved this vote percentage, is expected to win the second round by a significant margin and secure his reelection as president. Oğan, whose first-round votes led to the second round, bolstered the likelihood of Erdoğan's victory by urging his supporters to back him. Moreover, considering the increased votes cast abroad, a higher turnout is anticipated in this election compared to the nearly 90% turnout in the first round. A higher turnout works in Erdoğan's favor as he garners support from disadvantaged groups constituting the majority, while Kılıçdaroğlu receives votes from the affluent, wealthy, urban minority.

The opposition's joint candidate, Kılıçdaroğlu, suffered his 12th defeat against Erdoğan in the first round. His only maneuver prior to the second round was a shift toward right-wing policies. However, it is not a mere tactical move. He had positioned himself as a "leftist" to such an extent that he formed an alliance with the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), the legal faction of the separatist PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by the European Union and the United States, just before May 14.

Now, he adopts the rhetoric of a nationalist who harbors animosity toward foreigners. He claims to be determined to deport refugees residing in the country. He even conveyed this message through a video where he vigorously pounds a table. Regardless of the well-being of children, the elderly and women, he intends to fill buses with civilians fleeing from Bashar Assad's barrel bombs and terrorist organizations, sending them back to the war zone. Furthermore, he has plastered the entire country with posters targeting millions of refugees and openly espousing hateful discourse. He shamelessly lies to provoke such sentiments, asking, "As if 10 million Syrians are not enough, should 10-20 million more come?"

However, according to the records of international institutions and the state, there are 3.5 million Syrians in Türkiye. Even accounting for illegal entries, it is impossible for this number to reach 10 million. This becomes even clearer when we recall that Syria's prewar population was approximately 20 million.

Does this work?

So, does this new path, which borders on fascism in any language, work for Kılıçdaroğlu, who labeled himself a "democratic grandfather" prior to the election?

I don't think so. In the first round, he garnered support from racists to the greatest extent possible, contrasting with Erdoğan, who boldly declared that Türkiye would continue to fulfill its humanitarian and international legal responsibilities toward refugees.

Furthermore, Erdoğan, who resisted the populist wave, even convinced Oğan, who primarily received votes from anti-refugee voters, to consider more civilized approaches such as integration and voluntary returns.

My foreign readers may be thinking, "We thought Erdoğan was a right-wing opposition leader, not a leftist."

Rest assured, they are not alone. Take a moment to hear what a pro-Kılıçdaroğlu journalist, who is just as unfamiliar with Türkiye as they are, has to say about the election results:

"While a government, recognized for its nationalist stance, seeks pragmatic solutions to the refugee issue, the opposition, portraying itself as more democratic and left-leaning, is prioritizing the expulsion of refugees as a political agenda. The book of inconsistency is being re-penned in the realm of politics."

To intellectuals striving to comprehend the intricacies of Turkish politics, I advise them not to overlook the recurring observation made by the renowned Turkish philosopher, professor Idris Küçükömer:

"In Türkiye, left is right, and right is left!"