A comprehensive poll conducted by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) sheds light on what drove voters to the polling stations and what drove them away from voting as well.
Results of the poll show that the biggest motive for people to cast votes was the state of the economy. More than half of the voters interviewed for the poll based their choice of party in the March 31 municipal elections on the economy’s state.
The AK Party is seeking insight into the minds of voters before and during the elections that dealt a blow to its ambition to retain more municipal seats. The election in 81 provinces had a lower turnout compared to earlier votes while the main opposition, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), boosted its votes.
The party convened its administrative boards in the aftermath of the elections, while the party's chair, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, pledged that they would address the woes of voters. Several reports are being compiled by the party, which also sought opinions on the issue from think tanks such as the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA).
The latest poll’s results were disclosed at a recent meeting of the AK Party’s Strategy Committee. Results show voters formed their views prior to voting on how they were affected by economic challenges, particularly the economic woes of pensioners and the high cost of living. Another factor shaping voters’ choices was the dislike of candidates in certain constituencies and what is perceived as the AK Party’s insufficient communication with voters compared to past elections.
The AK Party now plans to move forward with new plans to address the concerns of voters based on polls and discussions with civic society members.
In his first speech, after the initial unofficial election results were made public, Erdoğan acknowledged the failure to achieve success while hailing what he called the victory of democracy. Addressing a crowd gathered outside AK Party headquarters in the capital Ankara hours after the vote count ended, Erdoğan stated that the nation exhibited its will in the ballots without encountering any restraints and that it was a major gain for Turkish democracy. "The victor of this election is democracy, the nation's will, regardless of political views of the electorate," he said.
According to the official results, voter turnout was 80.09% for votes for municipal assembly members. For mayoral elections, turnout was slightly above 78%. Out of 30 metropolitan municipalities, the AK Party won 12 municipalities, while the CHP won 14 seats. The New Welfare Party (YRP) won one metropolitan municipality seat while the pro-PKK Green Left Party (YSP), informally known as the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), a successor of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), won three metropolitan municipality seats. Out of 51 mayoral seats, the AK Party won 12 seats, while CHP won 21 seats.
Apart from losses for the AK Party, the highlight of this election is lower turnout. As some political pundits claimed, it is uncertain whether voter apathy linked to the same parties always winning played a role in low turnout. It might also be associated with the election being held during Ramadan, Islam's month of fasting, in which the faithful abstain from eating and drinking from dawn until more than one hour after the polls close.
