Today Turkey will be heavily featured in the international news for its historic first Presidential election. For the first time ordinary people will decide on a post that is normally chosen by parliament.
There are three contenders for this position. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu and Selahattin Demirtas. Erdogan is, of course, the current Prime Minister of the country and will no doubt win this election today as well. Why? Well he is the face that people see every day in newspapers, on television. The Turk said to me that for him Erdogan is the leader of a cult which has smothered democracy. A rock star if you will. He is adored by his followers and his smooth talking can turn even the most hardened head. Erdogan has allowed religion and politics to mix and that’s not on in The Turk’s mind. The other two contenders Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu and Selahattin Demirtas really do not have the power to pull in the numbers that Erdogan has. Ihsanoglu was previously the leader of the International Islamic Organisation so really isn’t that well known here in Turkey. Selahattin Demirtas is a young Kurdish hopeful but, as Turkey was at war with the minority Kurdish only a few years ago, the fact that he is running at all is a milestone for the country I think.
So what will happen from here? Probably nothing. Erdogan will move into the presidential position, one of his flunkies will move into the position of Prime Minister and life will go on. His control will continue, his opinions will be flaunted (Israel and foreign interests) sometimes to the detriment of the country but for me as a yabanci living in Turkey I just hope that Turkey continues to be a safe home for me and my family. We will see.
janeyinmersin 
What an interesting time for you to be there, and how good it is to be able to get an insight from a local for me – thank you.
I hope life can continue for you without any problems.
I nominated you for the Very Inspiring Blogger award. You can see my post here: http://julitownsend.wordpress.com/
🙂
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No change for now for sure, but in time the consolidation of executive powers under a single head could spell a turning point, both for Turkey and for the regional balance of power. Just thinking, we’ll have an executive presidency, a puppet government, and a controlled rather than just subdued judiciary and military, all within a single melting pot – crystal ball predictions for for 8-10 years time, hmm….?
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My crystal ball says put aside enough money to git if I need too lol!
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Wish we could… hey ho, can’t see civil service salaries permitting such. Lotto it is then.
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I agree with you 100%. I have little hope for the outcome but I’m just praying it will remain a safe and stable place to live.
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That’s all I want. I would hate leaving, family, friends and my dog behind!
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Dang it! I just got here. While I’m not really surprised by the outcome, I do hope that things remain status quo for just a little bit. (I won’t dare hope for things to improve.) At least enough time for me to have all the crap I shipped here to arrive, just so I can put it back on the boat and get the heck out of dodge. LOL. (I’m only half joking.)
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Politically I think turkey is quite stable. My issue is his desperate need for power and precisely what he will do with that power.
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