Nation Alliance (Turkey)
The Nation Alliance[4] (Turkish: Millet İttifakı), or simply Nation (Turkish: Millet), is an electoral alliance in Turkey, formed to contest the country's 2018 general election. The alliance was officially launched on 1 May 2018, and consists of four opposition parties, namely the Republican People's Party (CHP), the İyi Party (İYİ), the Felicity Party (SP), and the Democratic Party (DP).[5] The constituent parties of the Nation Alliance are set to contest the parliamentary election under a common banner, while each individual party is expected to nominate its own candidate for the presidential election.
Nation Alliance Millet İttifakı | |
|---|---|
| Leader | Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu (CHP) Meral Akşener (İYİ) |
| Founded | 1 May 2018 (launched) 3 May 2018 (agreement signed) 5 July 2018 (dissolved) 25 January 2019 (re-established)[1] |
| Ideology | Parliamentary democracy[2] Anti-Erdoğanism[3] Liberal democracy Kemalism Pro-Europeanism Secularism Civic nationalism Factions: Social democracy Liberal conservatism National conservatism |
| Political position | Big tent Factions: Centre-left to centre-right |
| Grand National Assembly | 176 / 600 |
| Metropolitan municipalities | 11 / 30 |
| District municipalities | 277 / 1,351 |
| Provincial councillors | 164 / 1,251 |
| Municipal Assemblies | 4,736 / 20,498 |
Formed against the backdrop of the 2017 constitutional referendum and subsequent constitutional amendments, the Nation Alliance brings together groups that campaigned for a "no" vote against the transition to a presidential system, and that are in opposition to the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.[6] As such, the Nation Alliance is seen as rivalling the pro-government People's Alliance,[7] which was established on 20 February 2018.
On 4 July, having won 189 seats in total, the İYİ Party General Secretary Aytun Çıray announced that the Nation Alliance had been dissolved, citing the lack of a need for a post-election alliance.[8] In response, the CHP's spokesperson Bülent Tezcan said that the election alliance was no longer technically necessary, but the union of alliance parties under a joint set of fundamental values (such as separation of powers and the rule of law) would continue.[9]
History
Formation
A constitutional referendum was held in April 2017 on transforming the political system of Turkey from a parliamentary to a presidential one. The referendum was sponsored by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the smaller oppositional Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). The referendum ultimately passed, effectively triggering the country's systemic transition. Meanwhile, the main opposition Republican People's Party, along with MHP dissidents like Meral Akşener, voiced strong opposition to the constitutional amendments. When the AKP and MHP later legalized the formation of pre-election alliances in order to contest the 2018 general election together, speculation arose over the possibility of opposition groups also establishing an alliance. After several rounds of talks, the CHP announced on 1 May 2018 the formation of its alliance with Akşener's new İyi Party, as well as with the extraparliamentary Felicity and Democratic parties.
Composition
Founding members
| Name | Ideology | Position | Leader | MPs | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHP | Republican People's Party Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi |
Kemalism, Social democracy | Centre-left | Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu | 144 / 600 | |
| İYİ | Good Party İyi Parti |
Liberal conservatism, Turkish nationalism | Centre to centre-right[10] | Meral Akşener | 42 / 600 | |
| SP | Felicity Party Saadet Partisi |
Millî Görüş | Far-right | Temel Karamollaoğlu | 2 / 600 | |
| DP | Democratic Party Demokrat Parti |
Liberal conservatism | Centre-right | Gültekin Uysal | 1 / 600 | |
Supporting parties
| Name | Ideology | Position | Leader | MPs | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DSP | Democratic Left Party Demokratik Sol Parti |
Social democracy | Centre-left | Önder Aksakal | 0 / 600 | |
| DYP | True Path Party Doğru Yol Partisi |
Liberal conservatism | Centre-right | Çetin Özaçıkgöz | 0 / 600 | |
| YP | Homeland Party Yurt Partisi |
National conservatism | Right-wing | Sadettin Tantan | 0 / 600 | |
TİYAP |
Unemployed and Workers' Party of Turkey Türkiye İşsizler ve Emekçiler Partisi |
Social democracy | Centre-left | Rıfat Derya Sercan | 0 / 600 | |
KP |
Women's Party Kadın Partisi |
Feminism | Left-wing | Benal Yazgan | 0 / 600 | |
EYP |
Unhindered Life Party Engelsiz Yaşam Partisi |
Disability rights | Hayri İdin | 0 / 600 | ||
BTP |
Great Turkey Party Büyük Türkiye Partisi |
Democratic socialism | Left-wing | Ali Çetin | 0 / 600 | |
MMP |
National Struggle Party Milli Mücadele Partisi |
Turkish nationalism | Right-wing | Ahmet Kaya | 0 / 600 | |
MHHP |
Defense of Rights Movement Party Müdafaa-i Hukuk Hareketi Partisi |
Kemalism | Kadir Kartal | 0 / 600 | ||
TBP |
Unity Party of Turkey Türkiye Birlik Partisi |
Kemalism | Hüseyin Ekici | 0 / 600 | ||
TBP |
Turkish Union Party Türk Birliği Partisi |
Turkish nationalism | Hurşit Yiğit | 0 / 600 | ||
GAP |
Young Anatolia Party Genç Anadolu Partisi |
National conservatism | Right-wing | Ali Alemdaroğlu | 0 / 600 | |
ANAVATAN |
Motherland Party | Liberal conservatism | Centre-right | İbrahim Çelebi | 0 / 600 | |
On 18 May, Democratic Left Party (DSP) announced that they will support Nation Alliance.[11]
İnce will be supported by the YP,[12] ANAP,[13] the TİYAP, the KP, the EYP, the BTP, the MMP, the MHHP, the Unity Party of Turkey, the United Turkey Party and the GAP[14] and Akşener will supported by the DSP and the DYP (Muğla branch)[15] for the presidential election.
Current members
| Name | Ideology | Position | Leader | MPs | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHP | Republican People's Party Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi |
Social democracy, Kemalism | Centre-left | Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu | 139 / 600 | |
| İYİ | Good Party İyi Parti |
Liberal conservatism, Turkish nationalism | Centre to centre-right[10] | Meral Akşener | 37 / 600 | |
Election results
General elections
| Election | Leaders | Votes | Seats | Government | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | Rank | # | ± | |||
| 2018 | Meral Akşener Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu Temel Karamollaoğlu Gültekin Uysal |
16,347,669 | 33.95 | 2nd | 189 / 600 |
47  |
AKP |
Local elections
| Election date | Party leaders | Mayoral election votes | Percentage of votes | Number of municipalities | Number of councillors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Meral Akşener Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu | 17,443,229 | 37,57% | 265 | 5,705 (27,50%) |
References
- CHP ve İYİ Parti'den ittifak açıklaması
- "Akşener'den 'Millet İttifakı' liderlerine toplantı çağrısı; "24 Haziran öncesi bir yol haritası açıklamak millete güven verecek"". T24 (in Turkish). 31 March 2018. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
- "PressTV-4 Turkish opposition parties form coalition". Retrieved 16 May 2018.
- "Turkish four-party alliance to sign agreement". Ahval News. Archived from the original on 3 May 2018. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
- "4 parti birleşti! Millet İttifakı geliyor". Haberiniz. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
- "Turkish opposition joins forces for parliament vote". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
- "Opposition parties agree to unite against People's Alliance in upcoming Turkish elections". Daily Sabah. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
- "İYİ Parti sözcüsü açıkladı... Millet İttifakı sona erdi". www.hurriyet.com.tr.
- "CHP Parti Sözcüsü Bülent Tezcan: Gündemimizde kurultay yok". BirGün Gazetesi. 4 July 2018. Archived from the original on 4 July 2018. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
- Istanbul, Hannah Lucinda Smith (2017-10-25). "Nationalist forms new party to challenge Erdogan". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2018-05-06.
- DSP'den Millet İttifakı'na destek
- "Sadettin Tantan kimi destekliyor". odatv.com.
- https://www.birgun.net/haber/anavatan-partisi-nden-muharrem-ince-ve-millet-ittifaki-na-destek-220560
- Mynet. "9 siyasi partiden Muharrem İnce'ye destek". Retrieved 24 June 2018.
- "DYP'den İYİ Partiye destek kararı". www.hamlegazetesi.com.tr.