Turkey’s 2015 parliamentary elections

Abstract

The 2015 parliamentary elections in Turkey marked an important turning point as the outcome ended the 12 years of single-party government by the Justice and Development Party (AKP). Apart from the main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), two other opposition parties, the Nationalist Action Party (MHP) and the People’s Democratic Party (HDP), gained more votes than in the previous election. Significantly, by gaining 13.1 per cent of the vote, HDP managed to cross the 10 per cent electoral threshold. Since no party obtained enough parliamentary seats to establish a single-party government, the parties that are represented in the parliament had to form a coalition government which could have moderated Turkey’s enduring social polarization. However, since none of the parties was able to establish a government, the president called for the early elections on 1 November 2015.