The speculation was aided by the political polarisation in Turkey, which was perceived to have made it difficult for two parties to come together in a coalition.
(meta data) TITLE: At last, the Turkish awakening Erdogan could not crush | Alev Scott | Opinion | The Guardian (meta data) AUTHOR: https://www.theguardian.com/profile/alev-scott (meta data) PUBLISHER: https://www.facebook.com/theguardian (meta data) PUBLISHED DATETIME: 2015-06-08T08:31:53-0400 Skip to main content The Guardian - Back to home Support The Guardian Available for everyone, funded by readers Search jobs Sign in current edition: US edition The Guardian view Opinion videos # At last, the Turkish awakening Erdogan could not crush Alev Scott The spirit of Gezi Park inspired an election result no one predicted. Now Turkey's opposition parties must form a grand coalition that marginalises the Orwellian AKP Mon 8 Jun 2015 08.31 EDT Last modified on Wed 5 Jul 2017 08.13 EDT Supporters of the Peoples' Democratic party wave Kurdish flags as they celebrate the results of Turkey's legislative election in the south-eastern of Diyarbaki. Photograph: Bulent Kilic/AFP/Getty Images Turkey fulfilled the legacy of Gezi Park yesterday. What protesters could not accomplish two years ago has now been achieved. Such a resounding vote for change – for the first time in 13 years – means the ludicrously named Justice and Development party (AKP) has lost its majority. Nobody expected this. As the votes came in last night and the opposition's amazed celebrations began, no one partied harder than supporters of the minority rights-focused Peoples' Democratic party (HDP), which blossomed out of the Gezi movement, and whose success in the face of intimidating odds proved the key to the AKP's undoing. On waking up today my overriding urge was to sing 'Ding dong, the witch is dead!' and dance like a liberated Munchkin There are now serious questions to be asked about Turkey's political future in the wake of this extreme transformation, but on waking up this morning my overriding urge was to sing "Ding dong, the witch is dead!" and dance like a liberated Munchkin. Of course I'm talking about President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who failed to surface yesterday evening after his ambitions for an executive presidency had been crushed with satisfying finality – and about whom I would never have written such blasphemous sentiments if his party still retained a majority. Being a writer in Turkey in recent years has meant self-censoring while admiring those braver than you – such as the journalist Can Dündar, who was sued last week by Erdoğan and now faces two life sentences for a "treasonous" news story. It has meant clothing your criticism in feeble witticisms and slightly despising yourself for scattering the word "alleged" into perfectly obvious accounts of government corruption. ## Turkey election results: what you need to know Read more Perhaps I'm speaking too soon. Domestic media are abuzz with speculation that repeat elections may be called in the next few months, which could result in the AKP clawing its way back if the electorate is sufficiently frightened by the prospect of instability to abandon its resolve for change. I could soon be regretting these words, but for now the puerile Wizard of Oz jingle is pure therapy. And I'm in good company – reading the triumphant headlines of anti-government papers this morning has been like taking part in a glorious orgy of righteous revenge, in which everyone has been granted sudden access to a stock of previously prohibited satire. It may prove hubristic, but today it is irresistible. Throughout Gezi I was constantly impressed by the insistence on peaceful protest among people daily subjected to police brutality, and I was equally impressed by the way the Kurdish supporters of the HDP refused to be provoked by the horrifying bombings on Friday at a party rally in the south-eastern city of Diyarbakir. I volunteered at a polling station yesterday in a conservative area of Istanbul, and felt the influence of Gezi on an electorate determined to participate in fair elections. After vote-rigging scandals during municipal elections last year, tens of thousands of volunteers mobilised to guard ballots and count them fairly. Every few minutes we cross-referenced our counts. We never discussed our personal choices, or passed judgment on the results. The important thing was to record it all fairly, and it felt momentous to be recording the fates of the children whose classroom we were sitting in, and whose older siblings occasionally popped curious faces in, asking about the results. ## Gezi Park has become a hotbed of activity as Turks make their stand | Constanze Letsch Read more One common conviction united the Gezi protesters two years ago: that they would not bow to an authoritarian government that labelled them "terrorists" and bullied them with an Orwellian police force and "thought crime" security laws. The same priority should guide the real victors of last night's results. While most people expect a coalition government of the AKP and the Nationalist Movement party or – worse – a hung parliament and new elections in a few months, Turkey's best hope in moving forward lies in a grand opposition alliance that would seek to put aside its differences and leave Erdoğan and his minions firmly in the background. Yes, there could be economic instability, and the coalition could struggle to survive a year. But after 13 years of the AKP, what a coalition of champions that could be. The opposition parties owe it to their voters, and above all to those who have died demanding change during the past two years. ## The Guardian view on the Turkish elections: Erdoğan's ambitions halted | Editorial Read more During the Gezi protests, I finished writing a book about Turkey that I optimistically called Turkish Awakening. After the crackdown that followed the protests, this seemed a sadly naive choice of title. By the time I had to update the second edition with a gloomy chapter chronicling the AKP's tightening authoritarian rule, I was actually embarrassed by the title. Now I'm ashamed to have doubted what Turkey was going through at the time – it was an awakening, it proved itself in yesterday's results, and it is time to act on it. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Reuse this content
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November 2015 Turkish general election
Background.:Early election.
The prospect for an early election arose as early as the eve of the previous election on 7 June 2015, as soon as it emerged that the AKP had lost its majority.