The ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) is a school of politics and a movement for Türkiye's youths and women, the party’s youngest lawmaker said Thursday as she praised its Chairperson and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s efforts to include younger people in state ranks.
"President Erdoğan is the most popular leader among Turkish youths," said the 25-year-old Zehranur Aydemir, who previously worked in the party’s youth branch until she was elected from the capital Ankara in the May elections.
Besides two lawmakers aged 30, the AK Party produced four under 30 for the new term on May 14 parliamentary polls.
The ruling party single-handedly holds 268 seats in 600-member Parliament, totaling 323 seats combined with its partners Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and the New Welfare Party (YRP), who won 50 and five seats, respectively.
Parliament in the new term has 121 female lawmakers, 50 of whom were elected from the AK Party and four from MHP.
Building a "dynamic and young" Cabinet in a way that would "resonate with the aspirations of the new generation" and fostering necessary affirmative action for women and youths were top promises Erdoğan made on his campaign trail.
He has since boasted that AK Party and MHP’s People’s Alliance received the "highest youth vote" in polls and assured his government would make "leaps" in the defense industry, education, technology, as well as arts and culture "for their sake."
For Aydemir, the campaigning period was a "pleasant time" wherein she "got to form a genuine communication with everyone."
"Nobody believed me when I told them my age. Not just AK Party voters but opposition supporters were surprised to see a candidate as young as I am and appreciated my nomination," she recalled.
The opposition described Aydemir’s age group as "the oppositionist, critical Generation Z," but she said this was not received well.
"As he dismissed the idea of ‘stuffing youths into a single letter,’ President Erdoğan called us the generation of Teknofest," Aydemir explained, referring to the world’s largest aviation, space, and technology festival held annually in Türkiye.
Aydemir said she wants to become someone who has achieved "key projects" for youths five years from now.
"I will work hard to ensure my fields reach more youths and children in Türkiye. This room (her office) belongs to youths and I want everyone to come here. I want to do my best to carry their dreams to Parliament," she said.
"My door is open to all youths and citizens, no matter their political opinions," she emphasized.