Papers by Ersin Kalaycioglu
Palgrave Macmillan US eBooks, 2005
The coup of September 12, 1980 was the last of the three coups that deeply influenced the substan... more The coup of September 12, 1980 was the last of the three coups that deeply influenced the substance and style of politics and governance in contemporary Turkey. Both the 1971 ultimatum and the 1980 institutional military coups were carried out by the military as “corrective measures” to remedy the ills of the coup of the young officers in 1960. The trial and sentencing to death of the Chief of General Staff of the Armed Forces, General Rustu Erdelhun in 1961, and the purges of 4,500 officers in 1960–1961 left an indelible ominous mark in the minds of all officers who came to serve as the commanders of the Turkish military forces afterward1 providing a model of action for the military command to follow after the coup.
South European Society and Politics, Apr 3, 2015
This paper examines the politics of presidential elections in Turkey with particular reference to... more This paper examines the politics of presidential elections in Turkey with particular reference to the 10 August 2014 presidential elections. It starts by scrutinising the change in the presidential election system from parliamentary to direct popular vote. It then probes the implementation of the new election rules, candidate selection, and the conduct of the campaign, followed by analysis of the election results and their influence on the Turkish record of democratisation. The paper concludes that the move to a partisan president elected by popular vote entails democratic dangers if the new incumbent does not abide by his or her constitutional role and attempts to intervene in government policy.
Routledge eBooks, Sep 13, 2013
DergiPark (Istanbul University), Aug 17, 2015
Southeast European and Black Sea Studies, Sep 22, 2017
Abstract Turkey had its fourth National Assembly elections on 7 June 2015 in the twenty-first cen... more Abstract Turkey had its fourth National Assembly elections on 7 June 2015 in the twenty-first century and this time they resulted in a hung parliament. The efforts at establishing a coalition government failed and the country moved to a snap, ‘repeat’ election on 1 November 2015. This paper focuses on how the voters registered their party preferences almost 5 months apart in the same legislative general elections and why. Using the same sample and interviewing those who lived at the same addresses as those in the ISSP Citizenship survey conducted February to April 2015 and again in October 2015, a panel data-set was constructed. A theoretical framework for voting behaviour that uses party identification, political ideology, ethnic, religious, social class identities and perceptions of the performance of the economy of the respondents to understand what factors help to influence the party preferences of the same respondents 5 months apart. A multivariate (binary logistic regression) analysis of the pre-June and October 2015 data sets revealed that economic voting had been the predominant factor in the June elections, but security concerns also interacted with popular economic evaluations in the November 2015 elections to reinstall the AKP to power.
Routledge eBooks, Oct 26, 2021
The historical, geographic, and cultural characteristics of Turkey have shaped political, economi... more The historical, geographic, and cultural characteristics of Turkey have shaped political, economic, and social developments. Historical and cultural ties haunt and challenge Turkey. Beginning in the eighteenth century, the decomposition of a medieval, patrimonial empire reaching its climax with the legal collapse of the Ottoman Empire in 1922, still reverberates. There is hardly a contemporary conflict, whether in the Balkans, the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea basins, Central Asia, Caucasus, and the Middle East, that does not somehow involve, influence, and even threaten Turkey. Hence, governing Turkey first and foremost involves simultaneously managing multiple international, regional, and domestic challenges, which often interact and influence each other.
Palgrave Macmillan US eBooks, 2005
The end of the nineteenth century was replete with dramatic developments in the domestic politica... more The end of the nineteenth century was replete with dramatic developments in the domestic political life of the Ottoman Empire. The modernizing reforms had run their course and culminated in the first constitution and the establishment of the first legislative institution, the Imperial Assembly (Meclis) of the Ottoman Empire by 1877. The term “Ottoman” in the text of the Constitution,1 yet it failed to make any difference on how the “Ottoman subjects” perceived their identity. Ottoman “citizenship” never seemed to be sufficient in providing an idea around which the myriads of religious communities (millets), ethnic groups, tribes and clans united, nor were democratization on firm ground. The Ottoman bicameral Meclis met in 1877 with the election of deputies from all over the Empire from Arabia to Serbia. However, the eruption of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, and the Constitution’s entrusting the Sultan Abdulhamit II with excessive powers, shortly after led to the suspension of the activities of the Meclis, when the deputies started to level criticisms of the Sultan’s handling of the Russo-Turkish war, until 1908.2
Routledge eBooks, Oct 26, 2021
New Perspectives on Turkey, 1999
An overview of general elections and the party system from the beginning of multi-party politics ... more An overview of general elections and the party system from the beginning of multi-party politics in Turkey would indicate a proclivity towards an increasing number of major parties coupled with fragmentation of the party system. The predominant party system of the 1950s favored stability over representativeness (see Table 1). The 1961 Constitution established new electoral rules and a liberal political regime, which provided for more opportunity for representativeness. The 1965 and 1969 elections produced party governments, with a proportional representation formula that wasted almost no votes; even those parties with the smallest number of followers won some seats in the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TGNA) (see Table 1). For a while in the 1960s Turkey therefore appeared to have discovered the optimal ground of converging stable governments with consummate representativeness. The party governments of the 1960s, however, gave way to the unstable coalition governments of the 1970s, which coincided with a wave of terror and political instability. Coalition governments came to be equated with political instability and terror in the minds of not only the masses, but also the most powerful political forces in the country.
Palgrave Macmillan US eBooks, 2005
The Republic of Turkey (Turkiye Cumhuriyeti) was established on October 29, 1923. The Treaty of L... more The Republic of Turkey (Turkiye Cumhuriyeti) was established on October 29, 1923. The Treaty of Lausanne (signed on July 24, 1923), designated the new government in Ankara as the legal and legitimate heir of the Ottoman Empire, for the latter had been abolished in 1922 and thus was not a party to the Treaty.1 The new Turkish government would rather sever its ties with the decrepit and by then abolished Empire. Indeed, most enterprises and policies designed by the Turkish government after 1923 were to serve that purpose.
Routledge eBooks, Oct 26, 2021
De Gruyter eBooks, Dec 31, 1988
BRILL eBooks, 1995
Donated by Klaus KreiserReprinted from in : Turkey: Political, Social and Economic Challenges in ... more Donated by Klaus KreiserReprinted from in : Turkey: Political, Social and Economic Challenges in the 1990s. (Leiden, New York, Koln: E.J. Brill, 1995)
Turkish Studies, Jan 2, 2016
ABSTRACT Turkey has had a long track record of coalition governments, yet when the June 7, 2015 g... more ABSTRACT Turkey has had a long track record of coalition governments, yet when the June 7, 2015 general elections produced a hung parliament attempts at establishing a new coalition government failed. Why was this so? This paper argues that the non-compromising attitude of the AKP and the MHP, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, the recalcitrance of the President, who perceived any government he had no firm control over as a threat to his political career, undermined any effort at establishing a coalition government. The terror campaign of the PKK and efforts by the AKP and the MHP to demonize the HDP as the party of terror also undermined the chances of the CHP to form a coalition that included the HDP. Hence, Turkey's chances of establishing a democratic government through compromise failed and the country went back to polarizing politics of competitive authoritarianism under the hegemony of the one-party government of the AKP.
De Gruyter eBooks, May 21, 2014
New Perspectives on Turkey, 2009
Turkish Studies, 2001
Despite Turkey’s long record of electoral democracy, its system has failed to provide the expecte... more Despite Turkey’s long record of electoral democracy, its system has failed to provide the expected continuity and stability. This article examines the factors behind shortcomings in Turkish democracy. It includes a consideration of public attitudes, party organization, political participation, the rule of law, patronage, and protest. The goal is to provide a coherent and balanced picture of both weaknesses in the Turkish political system and reasons to hope for future improvements.
Alaturka Baskanlik Rejimi hakkindaki iddialarin ve bu rejimin Turkiye'deki demokratiklesme ve... more Alaturka Baskanlik Rejimi hakkindaki iddialarin ve bu rejimin Turkiye'deki demokratiklesme ve hukukun ustunlugunu yerlestirme cabalarina olan muhtemel etkilerini arastiran bir kritik.
Uploads
Papers by Ersin Kalaycioglu