We face an unusual situation in politics.

We used to have coalition governments in Türkiye. The political parties used to enter races with election campaigns and afterward when the election was over, the parties used to take part in coalitions based on the votes they received. So, former coalitions could form accordingly.

In the new presidential system, since the party that receives one vote more than the 50% of the total ballots in the presidential elections wins the polls, the old model of coalitions is now way behind.

The previous winner, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, is a candidate again in the 2023 elections. The Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) stood by Erdoğan in the last elections and continues to support him in this one. President Erdoğan seems to be the candidate who will win the 2023 elections.

However, the opposition bloc, the members of the so-called "table for six," namely the Republican People's Party (CHP), the Good Party (IP), the Felicity Party (SP), the Democracy and Progress Party (DEVA), the Future Party (GP), and the Democrat Party (DP), can neither win when they standalone nor when they come together. So, as they needed the Peoples' Democratic Party's (HDP) votes also, they developed this "table for six" model.

While setting the table at the beginning, they did not consider determining an appropriate road map, framework or method.

There is an expression in Turkish army tradition: The army lines up on the road. When one looks at the historical background, there are reasons for the army to line up on the road. However, one must describe the topics and questions within a framework at the beginning of a political alliance of this kind. Otherwise, it would be hard to settle issues on the political ground and evaluate them along the way.

Candidacy issue

The parties at the table set many critical, hard-to-solve problems aside to address later. The crucial questions like, "Who will be the presidential candidate?," "What will be the role of each party?" or "How to win the election?" remain unaddressed. Instead, they pretended as these issues, which they could not agree on, were to be treated discreetly because of their strategic emphasis. They created mysterious atmospheres as if the "table for six" had unique strategies they were not revealing.

This situation caused them to fight constantly with one another along the way. They could not discuss any policies related to Türkiye, society, politics, foreign policy, the future, social issues or any priority questions of the country. First, the HDP and the IP fought. Later, GP Chairperson Ahmet Davutoğlu explained they would make all decisions with the consensus of all, which the other parties strictly opposed, claiming that there was no such decision. Tensions rose. The "who will be the candidate" fight started between the IP and the CHP, and the issue continues to this day.

The ruling party announced the election date, and the clock is ticking. As we are getting closer every day, neither the name of the presidential candidate of the "table for six" is yet clear, nor is the political program’s framework.

Usually, political parties write their programs, assign their candidates and appear before the public with their campaigns. However, one cannot explain to society in two months how to administer a country like Türkiye, its political strategy and the collective vision of six parties. Turks will not buy it. Or they can appoint a candidate who will shake up and turn all social opinions in their favor. However, when you look at Turkish politics, there has not been such a candidate other than Erdoğan for 20 years. The votes of the IP and the CHP have begun to decline.

In recent weeks, the electorate's choice has started to change clearly in favor of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party). In this context, when we put the numbers on top of each other, the votes of the "table for six" are not enough to win the election. For this reason, the "table for six" faces a tough test. The opposition bloc seems to have ruined its policies through its own efforts. The six parties made themselves incapable of producing politics.

Everybody thinks ideology is conclusive in the life of political parties in Türkiye. However, the only priority of the parties sitting at the table is to defeat Erdoğan. Ideology does not matter. When CHP Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu emerged as a potential candidate, Cihan Paçacı, deputy chairperson of the IP, resigned the other day and left the party. We will observe many similar reactions when the opposition bloc agrees on the name of its candidate.

Politics has many peculiarities and contains many sensitive problems in Türkiye. It is not easy to administer a country. The "table for six" is facing a severe test. We shall see how the events will unfold.