Erdogan upset over decline in AKP votes, roasts party seniors

In a recent meeting of the Central Executive Board (MYK), President Tayyip Erdogan has expressed his anger towards party members regarding the decline in his AKP's (Justice and Development Party) votes from 42% to 35%, according to Turkey’s Cumhuriyet newspaper.

Erdogan reportedly mentioned that mistakes were made in the selection of candidates on the party's electoral lists, resulting in a lack of public acceptance in many provinces. He said that more effective fieldwork should have been conducted during the election campaign, and the party's candidates were not embraced by the voters, leading to a decrease in the number of parliamentary seats.

In the 2018 elections, the AKP received 42.56% of the votes, which translated to 295 parliamentary seats. However, in the recent elections held on May 14, the AKP couldn't replicate its previous success and saw its vote share decrease to 35.58%, resulting in only 267 parliamentary seats.

Sources indicate that one of the main topics discussed in the MYK meeting, led by President Erdogan, was the reasons behind this decline in votes. It is alleged that Erdogan expressed his dissatisfaction with the party's electoral lists, suggesting that mistakes were made. He emphasized that voters did not embrace the candidates listed, and effective campaign activities were not carried out in various provinces.

During the AKP MYK meeting, it was revealed that a decision had been made to establish joint election offices with the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) for the second round of the presidential elections. The AKP and MHP will set up these offices for the runoff elections scheduled for May 28. It is worth noting that Recep Tayyip Erdogan is the joint presidential candidate of both parties.

The MHP had previously conducted a campaign called "Our Candidate is Erdogan" during the May 14 elections. While separate campaigns were carried out for parliamentary seats, the election on May 28 will solely focus on the presidential race. Therefore, both the AKP and MHP will have a unified message during the campaign, aiming for a more effective collaboration for the second round. Additionally, it is noted that nationalist rhetoric will be more prominent during this stage.