Abstract
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) won the 2007 general elections in Turkey by a large margin and became the first party since the 1980s to increase its votes in two consecutive elections while in power (1). Although the elections were held in a highly tense political climate arising from controversy surrounding the presidential elections (Bacik, 2008), the results came as no surprise to many and received far less attention in the media, academia and public compared to the previous elections held in 2002. The exceptionally low turnout rate of 59.3%, as opposed to 84.3% in 2002, is one of the obvious indications of low public interest in the elections.
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