On May 14th there will be elections in Turkey.
A tight exit is expected.
Can Erdogan expand his power further?
Ankara – Many Turks are looking forward to the presidential and parliamentary elections on May 14 with hope or fear.
Will Recep Tayyip Erdogan cement his power and be able to further expand his autocracy?
Or will a victory for the Social Democrat Kemal Kilicdaroglu bring about the turning point that many are eagerly awaiting?
So far, the 69-year-old has not lost an election.
He has been in power in Turkey since 2002.
A tight outcome is expected in the 2023 elections.
According to polls, opposition leader Kilicdaroglu from the largest opposition party, CHP, has a good chance of replacing President Erdogan after 20 years in power.
Türkiye election 2023: Is the end of the Erdogan era near?
Türkiye election 2023: Is the end of the Erdogan era near?
Election in Turkey: Erdogan promises generous election gifts
Last but not least, the inflation and the chaotic crisis management after the devastating earthquake could be the head of state's undoing.
Lawyers reported Erdogan for intentional killing after the earthquake.
The 69-year-old tries to take countermeasures again about three weeks before the election – and promises generous election gifts.
On Monday (April 24) he announced new economic relief for tradespeople, the newspaper
Hürriyet Daily News
reported.
Traders who sell self-made products on the Internet should also be granted a tax exemption.
The exemption limit is to be more than doubled, namely from 320,000 to 700,000 Turkish lira.
Traders who transport commercial goods, for example by taxi, minibus or truck, would not have to pay any special consumption tax when renewing their vehicles.
The regulations would come into force when a new parliament was formed after the May 14 elections, Erdogan said.
"Hopefully this will be one of the first orders we will issue when the new parliament takes office," the newspaper quoted him as saying.
Erdogan also emphasized that he wanted to permanently reduce inflation to a single-digit value.
Turkey Election 2023: Inflation in March 2023 at 50.51 percent YoY
Although inflation in Turkey has been declining steadily over the past five months, it was still at 50.51 percent year-on-year in March 2023.
Unlike other major economies, however, Turkey is not taking action to combat the rise in prices by raising key interest rates.
In fact, the key interest rate of the Turkish central bank has fallen from 14 to 8.5 percent since August.
This came under pressure from the Turkish head of state Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Contrary to prevailing economic theories, he believes that high interest rates encourage inflation.
Election in Turkey: Profits from gas reserves as Erdogan's promise
The President also alluded to the gas reserves in the Black Sea.
His government wants to use the resulting profit to invest in Turkey's future.
Turkey discovered the Sakarya gas field in 2020, and in the summer of 2021 Erdogan announced that another deposit had been discovered there during exploratory drilling.
Construction work on a pipeline began in June 2022.
They want to use the profits to set up a family and youth bank and thus finance their studies.
In addition, family institutions should be strengthened, Erdogan said, according to the newspaper.
Whether Erdogan can win the election with these promises remains questionable.
Nothing is decided yet.
But Erdogan's defeat would have consequences.
What happens if the 69-year-old loses the Turkey election?
(mbr)
