For the 2023 election, Erdogan forged an alliance with the Hüda Par. Even in his own party, this is met with criticism. The party is said to be close to the Turkish Hezbollah.
Frankfurt/Ankara - Around 64 million Turks are called upon to cast their votes on Sunday. Parliament and President are re-elected. The political future of the country will be decided. According to current polls, the race in the Turkish election will probably be more exciting than it has been for a long time. Will Recep Tayyip Erdogan be able to cement and further expand his power? In doing so, the 69-year-old is relying on an explosive alliance that even splits his own party.
Turkey election 2023: Erdogan's controversial alliance causes criticism from his own ranks
For the election, Erdogan has forged new alliances - and thus caused criticism from his own ranks. In 2018, he ran in alliance with the ultra-nationalist MHP. Now he is also supported by the Islamist New Welfare Party and the Kurdish Islamist Hüda Par, among others.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is supported by the pro-Hezbollah party Hüda Par. © Mustafa Kaya/IMAGO
The two Islamist parties are running with an anti-feminist programme. For example, Hüda Par wants to enforce the protection of the "traditional" family from "deviant" ideologies, teach girls and boys separately and offer women working conditions that correspond to their "nature".
"What we have to do is clear - make Erdogan president," wrote the chairman of Hüda Par, Mehmet Zülfi Tan, via Twitter. Erdogan wants to help four Hüda Par candidates into parliament. As the German Press Agency (dpa) reported in April 2023, Özlem Zengin, vice-chairman of the AKP parliamentary group, protested against the alliance - and was unsuccessful.
Turkey election 2023: Erdogan in alliance with pro-Hezbollah party
The party Hür Dava Partisi (Hüda Par, Party of the Free Cause) was founded in Ankara in 2012, according to the Federal Agency for Civic Education. In the upcoming Turkish elections, Hüda Par is not running independently, but together with the People's Alliance, i.e. an electoral alliance of:
- ACP
- MHP
- BBP
- New Welfare Party
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The North Rhine-Westphalia Office for the Protection of the Constitution certifies that the Hüda Par party is close to the Turkish Hezbollah (TH). According to a 2019 report by the state's Office for the Protection of the Constitution, "It has clear links to the TH and can offer its supporters a new form of organization."
Turkey's Hezbollah is responsible for numerous murders. Hundreds of Hezbollah terrorists were released from custody between 2018 and 2021 - on Erdogan's orders. As a Turkish newspaper reported, this was directly related to the statements of Hüda Par in the 2018 elections. They declared at the time that they would not put forward a presidential candidate and support Erdogan - similar to what happened in the 2019 election year.
Election campaign in Germany: Hüda Par to catch votes for Erdogan
In 2023, the pro-Hezbollah party Hüda Par even campaigned in Germany - apparently without the knowledge of the authorities. After appearances in Hamburg, a delegation also appeared in Wiesbaden and campaigned for votes for Erdogan and the AKP.
Between 27 April and 9 May, eligible voters were able to vote abroad. In Germany, 1.5 million Turks were thus able to have a say in the decision-making process. However, many polling stations remained closed in this country. Nevertheless, there were signs of a high voter turnout. After just eleven days, it was higher than in the 2018 election.