23 June 2019 Istanbul mayoral election

[Zurkerx]

Ah, so his re-election thing for the city backfired, and spectacularly too.

[Rothbardian Paradise]

Reggie congratulated him so he'll try something else instead.

My guess is that he'll attempt to strip the mayorship of its powers.

[Rothbardian Paradise]

Ergodan drove opposition turnout and made himself look weak. An idiot as always. I'm sure he tried to cheat this one too.

and if he tries anything this time it will only weaken him more.

There is speculation that the re-run was only held in order to give the current administration more time to cover up their corruption.

[San Lumen]

Reggie congratulated him so he'll try something else instead.

My guess is that he'll attempt to strip the mayorship of its powers.

Oh yeah that will make him look great. Although Republican in Wisconsin did something similar that last year after they lost and I wouldn't put something like that past him

and if he tries anything this time it will only weaken him more.

There is speculation that the re-run was only held in order to give the current administration more time to cover up their corruption.

Very possible

[Novus America]

Ergodan drove opposition turnout and made himself look weak. An idiot as always. I'm sure he tried to cheat this one too.

and if he tries anything this time it will only weaken him more.

One can only hope, hopefully Erdogan will be gone before he completely destroys Turkey.

[Novus America]

Istanbul mayoral re-run: Erdogan's ruling AKP lose again


Reggie congratulated him so he'll try something else instead.

He has no choice but to concede that defeat but he will be mad.

True, I would not be surprised if the new mayor gets thrown in jail on BS charges.
That is kind of Erdogan’s thing.

Sure the smart thing for Erdogan would just be truly concede, but Erdogan is spiteful, vengeful and unhinged.

[Novus America]

I'm not going to lie, I half expected him to go "they cheated" and call for another re-election. Guess he knows when he's beat. This time. Here's hoping Istanbul is the beginning of the weakening of Erdogan's grip on Turkey.



Wait I thought that was Konstantaniyye.

The margin is just too great to say "they cheated" again. Right now, the final results have us sitting at around a 800,000 vote margin.

The AKP has been crumbling steadily, being unable to offer any sort of vision and future to their constituents. For the last ten years, all they've really been doing is pointing fingers and accusing the person the finger is directed at of being in cahoots with the PKK, the Fetullah Gülen cemaat, or DHKP-C, or whatever unfavourable group they pick. The AKP stopped policies around 2007, truthfully.

And yes, it was Konstantiniyye. "Istanbul" is a corruption of the phrase "eis tin Polin", I believe, which largely meant "to the City" to the Romans who lived there back in the day.

Congratulations on they victory, I hope this will reenergize the opposition and hope this is just one of many to come.

[Frieden-und Freudenland]

He has no choice but to concede that defeat but he will be mad.

True, I would not be surprised if the new mayor gets thrown in jail on BS charges.
That is kind of Erdogan’s thing.

Sure the smart thing for Erdogan would just be truly concede, but Erdogan is spiteful, vengeful and unhinged.

You are right, they pulled that trick in many Eastern cities where the mayors were from the pro-Kurdish party HDP. They removed the mayors from office on unfounded and nebulous terrorism charges, and I am ashamed to admit that the Kemalist Turks in the West did not object to this blatant disregard for democracy in the East. These cities are now being run by the "trustees" appointed by the government, not by their elected mayors. Where is the will of the people? Why are Western Turks silent?

This is a question that we have to ask ourselves.

For Ekrem Imamoglu, however, it would be political suicide for Erdogan to try to remove him from office. He did mention something like this on TV several days ago, but I think he was bluffing. As you see, the election re-run backfired on Erdogan and if he continues to persecute and victimize Imamoglu, he will emerge from this mess as an even greater hero. Does Erdogan want to create a political martyr who then takes the Presidency from him, who forces him to vacate his beloved palace with over a thousand rooms? As I said, that would be political suicide for Erdogan.

On the other hand, anyone who is watching Turkish politics closely can see that it is becoming more and more common for AKP to make tactical mistakes. In its early days, AKP did have more educated people on its side, but they have all been alienated from the party for one reason or another, and became replaced by a bunch of despicable, incompetent vultures who are utterly incapable of running the country. Heck, the finance minister is Erdogan's son-in-law and he is a joke. When he is not screwing prostitutes in Thailand or Miami (actual information from his wife's email to him, see Wikileaks), he is screwing up Turkey's economy. Because no politician who would be qualified to be in charge of the economy is in AKP right now - and that should tell you a lot. AKP is full of uneducated, unqualified people right now, whose brains are in a vegetative state. It is a surprise that they are still somehow surviving. No wonder they are making all these stupid mistakes. I think they are just gonna destroy themselves if we give them some time.

Me?

I'll just make some popcorn and watch. It's fun

[Risottia]

Finally some good news from Turkey. Straight up Erdogan's ass.

[Myrensis]

and if he tries anything this time it will only weaken him more.

There is speculation that the re-run was only held in order to give the current administration more time to cover up their corruption.

Yeah, been hearing that too. Though even if they manage to cover it up, AKP is still in a bad place because that corruption was a major source of their power. With the opposition taking several of the wealthiest municipalities, the Little Sultan and friends have a lot less money to throw around for political support and favors.

As I understand it prior to the elections the AKP controlled something like 75% of the countries GDP, now it's closer to 30.

[San Lumen]

True, I would not be surprised if the new mayor gets thrown in jail on BS charges.
That is kind of Erdogan’s thing.

Sure the smart thing for Erdogan would just be truly concede, but Erdogan is spiteful, vengeful and unhinged.

You are right, they pulled that trick in many Eastern cities where the mayors were from the pro-Kurdish party HDP. They removed the mayors from office on unfounded and nebulous terrorism charges, and I am ashamed to admit that the Kemalist Turks in the West did not object to this blatant disregard for democracy in the East. These cities are now being run by the "trustees" appointed by the government, not by their elected mayors. Where is the will of the people? Why are Western Turks silent?

This is a question that we have to ask ourselves.

For Ekrem Imamoglu, however, it would be political suicide for Erdogan to try to remove him from office. He did mention something like this on TV several days ago, but I think he was bluffing. As you see, the election re-run backfired on Erdogan and if he continues to persecute and victimize Imamoglu, he will emerge from this mess as an even greater hero. Does Erdogan want to create a political martyr who then takes the Presidency from him, who forces him to vacate his beloved palace with over a thousand rooms? As I said, that would be political suicide for Erdogan.

On the other hand, anyone who is watching Turkish politics closely can see that it is becoming more and more common for AKP to make tactical mistakes. In its early days, AKP did have more educated people on its side, but they have all been alienated from the party for one reason or another, and became replaced by a bunch of despicable, incompetent vultures who are utterly incapable of running the country. Heck, the finance minister is Erdogan's son-in-law and he is a joke. When he is not screwing prostitutes in Thailand or Miami (actual information from his wife's email to him, see Wikileaks), he is screwing up Turkey's economy. Because no politician who would be qualified to be in charge of the economy is in AKP right now - and that should tell you a lot. AKP is full of uneducated, unqualified people right now, whose brains are in a vegetative state. It is a surprise that they are still somehow surviving. No wonder they are making all these stupid mistakes. I think they are just gonna destroy themselves if we give them some time.

Me?

I'll just make some popcorn and watch. It's fun

Erdogan is such a wannabe dictator I wouldn't put it past him to bring charges against Istanbul's new mayor.

[Novus America]

True, I would not be surprised if the new mayor gets thrown in jail on BS charges.
That is kind of Erdogan’s thing.

Sure the smart thing for Erdogan would just be truly concede, but Erdogan is spiteful, vengeful and unhinged.

You are right, they pulled that trick in many Eastern cities where the mayors were from the pro-Kurdish party HDP. They removed the mayors from office on unfounded and nebulous terrorism charges, and I am ashamed to admit that the Kemalist Turks in the West did not object to this blatant disregard for democracy in the East. These cities are now being run by the "trustees" appointed by the government, not by their elected mayors. Where is the will of the people? Why are Western Turks silent?

This is a question that we have to ask ourselves.

For Ekrem Imamoglu, however, it would be political suicide for Erdogan to try to remove him from office. He did mention something like this on TV several days ago, but I think he was bluffing. As you see, the election re-run backfired on Erdogan and if he continues to persecute and victimize Imamoglu, he will emerge from this mess as an even greater hero. Does Erdogan want to create a political martyr who then takes the Presidency from him, who forces him to vacate his beloved palace with over a thousand rooms? As I said, that would be political suicide for Erdogan.

On the other hand, anyone who is watching Turkish politics closely can see that it is becoming more and more common for AKP to make tactical mistakes. In its early days, AKP did have more educated people on its side, but they have all been alienated from the party for one reason or another, and became replaced by a bunch of despicable, incompetent vultures who are utterly incapable of running the country. Heck, the finance minister is Erdogan's son-in-law and he is a joke. When he is not screwing prostitutes in Thailand or Miami (actual information from his wife's email to him, see Wikileaks), he is screwing up Turkey's economy. Because no politician who would be qualified to be in charge of the economy is in AKP right now - and that should tell you a lot. AKP is full of uneducated, unqualified people right now, whose brains are in a vegetative state. It is a surprise that they are still somehow surviving. No wonder they are making all these stupid mistakes. I think they are just gonna destroy themselves if we give them some time.

Me?

I'll just make some popcorn and watch. It's fun

The thing is as you note we cannot assume Erdogan is always rational and competent.

[Luziyca]

There is speculation that the re-run was only held in order to give the current administration more time to cover up their corruption.

Yeah, been hearing that too. Though even if they manage to cover it up, AKP is still in a bad place because that corruption was a major source of their power. With the opposition taking several of the wealthiest municipalities, the Little Sultan and friends have a lot less money to throw around for political support and favors.

As I understand it prior to the elections the AKP controlled something like 75% of the countries GDP, now it's closer to 30.

I did not realize Istanbul alone contributed 45% of Turkey's GDP.

I guess I learn something new every day.

[Vistulange]

True, I would not be surprised if the new mayor gets thrown in jail on BS charges.
That is kind of Erdogan’s thing.

Sure the smart thing for Erdogan would just be truly concede, but Erdogan is spiteful, vengeful and unhinged.

You are right, they pulled that trick in many Eastern cities where the mayors were from the pro-Kurdish party HDP. They removed the mayors from office on unfounded and nebulous terrorism charges, and I am ashamed to admit that the Kemalist Turks in the West did not object to this blatant disregard for democracy in the East. These cities are now being run by the "trustees" appointed by the government, not by their elected mayors. Where is the will of the people? Why are Western Turks silent?

This is a question that we have to ask ourselves.

This is partially true and partially false. The Western Turks were not silent as a monolithic entity - some were, some weren't. The parts that were silent were silent not out of a hatred for Kurds and the HDP, but instead due to political expediency, i.e. the HDP being a political boogeyman. With this local election, it's also been shown that the HDP is not as big of a boogeyman as it's been made out to be by the AKP.

Moreover, there's the very simple and very unfortunate fact that cities like Hakkari, Şırnak, Mardin, and even Diyarbakır don't matter as much as Istanbul. Istanbul is a gargantuan city, holding about 15-20% of the country's population and a massive amount of its GDP. It's the cultural, economic, and social heart of Turkey. Removing an elected mayor from Istanbul is certainly not the same thing as removing an elected mayor from Diyarbakır.

No group in Turkey is a monolithic group. "Western Turks" do not exist, just as "Kurds" don't exist as a monolithic group. While there are tendencies that we are able to observe, such as voting patterns and the reasons behind them, these are in the end statistics and not end-all laws of nature. Some Western Turks were against this, some weren't; just like how some Kurds vote AKP and some Kurds vote HDP. Hell, the AKP is still very popular in the Southeastern provinces. It just happens to get 45%-ish of the vote, while the HDP gets 49-55%-ish.

Erdogan is such a wannabe dictator I wouldn't put it past him to bring charges against Istanbul's new mayor.

That would be so ironic that it wouldn't happen. Because, well, that's literally how Erdoğan himself got elected in the first place. Elected as Istanbul's mayor, had farcical charges brought up against him, got convicted, spent some meagre time in prison, then got the biggest majority in the Parliament since fucking Menderes. The rest, we all know. I hope.

I did not realize Istanbul alone contributed 45% of Turkey's GDP.

I guess I learn something new every day.

Istanbul's economic, cultural, social, and even political importance cannot ever be overstated in a Turkish context. "Who wins Istanbul wins Turkey" is an oft-cited quote for a reason.

[Novus America]

“Erdogan, who had challenged Imamoglu’s win in the original vote, accepted the outcome of the rerun he championed, but has hinted the new mayor could run into legal problems. He suggested Imamoglu might be tried for allegedly insulting a provincial governor, and a prison sentence could lead to his ouster -- much as Erdogan lost his own seat as Istanbul mayor in 1998 for reciting an Islamic poem deemed a threat to Turkey’s secular order.”
https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/news/arti ... ding_now_1

Stay classy Erdogan...