Turkey's Republican People's Party (CHP): A Longue Duree Analysis

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Çınar S. K., Ugur-Cinar M., Acikgoz A.

TURKISH STUDIES, vol.24, no.2, pp.205-230, 2023 (SSCI) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 24 Issue: 2
  • Publication Date: 2023
  • Doi Number: 10.1080/14683849.2022.2119849
  • Journal Name: TURKISH STUDIES
  • Journal Indexes: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, IBZ Online, International Bibliography of Social Sciences, Historical Abstracts, Index Islamicus, MLA - Modern Language Association Database, Political Science Complete, Public Affairs Index, Sociological abstracts, Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
  • Page Numbers: pp.205-230
  • Keywords: Republican People's Party (CHP), Turkish politics, political parties, democratization, center-periphery cleavage, secular-religious cleavage, TURKISH POLITICS, SPATIAL-ANALYSIS, OPPOSITION, CLEAVAGES, ELECTIONS, FAILURE, CRISIS
  • Middle East Technical University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

This article employs regressive and spatial analyses to understand the correlates of the CHP's electoral support from the first competitive elections in 1950 to the present. We find that despite some continuities in its constituency, the CHP's voter base has changed significantly with regards to key political and social dynamics such as the Kurdish vote, effective number of parties, and urbanization. The findings give credence to the role of political leadership as well as the evolutionary capability of the party, both of which can have important implications regarding the future electoral trajectory of the party and of Turkey's political regime.