Elections on 12 June Come in New Apparel

About 50 million people are entitled to vote in Turkey's general elections on 12 June 2011. For the first time, the propaganda of the election campaigns can be made in Kurdish. The minimum age for candidates was taken down to 25. University students will be able to vote in the district of their residential accommodation and will not have to go to their home towns to join the poll.

The electorate will be able to choose between candidates of 27 political parties. This year's treasury grants have tripled due to the elections. However, only three parties will be able to benefit from the treasury grants: the Justice and Development Party (AKP) currently in power, the Republican People's Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).

The three parties received a total of TL 109,100,370 (approx. € 54,000,000) treasury grants in January this year. Due to the general elections, they will benefit from additional support worth TL 218,200,741 (€ 109,000,000) distributed as follows: TL 186,544,000 go to the AKP; the CHP will receive TL 83,608,000; TL 57,148,000 will go to the MHP.

Highest number of MPs in Istanbul, lowest in Bayburt

According to the decision of the Supreme Election Board (YSK) dated 26 February 2011, Istanbul will have 85 candidatures, Ankara 31 and Izmir 26. The lowest number of candidates as Member of Parliament was issued for the province of Bayburt in north-eastern Anatolia with only one.

The number of members of parliament was increased in 14 provinces and decreased in another 28 provinces. In the majority of 39 provinces, the number of members of parliament is going to remain the same. Currently, 67 MPs from Istanbul, 29 from Ankara and 24 from Izmir took seats at the present parliament.

Fee for independent candidates rocketed

Everybody can become a candidate for the elections if the criteria announced on 14 March 2011 are being fulfilled. However, at the same day, the YSK increased the "application fee for independent candidates" by 1,730 percent from TL 446 (€ 220) in 2007 to TL 7,734 (€ 3,800) in 2011.

Propaganda in Kurdish, minimum age for candidates 25 years

Upon the approval of the 'Amendment Act of the Law on Basic Elections Provisions and Electoral Rolls and the Law on Parliamentary Elections' on 8 April 2010, for the first time political propaganda in a language other than Turkish will be possible.

The provision allows political propaganda to be made in open areas until two hours after sun set. The wooden ballot boxes will be exchanged by transparent plastic boxes. The duration of billboard campaigns was increased from 20 to 30 days.

Another first is the decrease of the minimum age for candidates to 25 years.

Anybody who hinders a person from voting shall be sentenced to imprisonment of between one and three years. The sentence shall be increased to three to five years if threat, force or violence are involved. The punishment shall increase by a third if the above mentioned offences were imposed to more than one voter.

Election period limited to four years

The election period was reduced from five to four years upon the outcome of the referendum on 21 October 2007.

On 3 October 2010, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced to hold the general elections one month early in June 2011. On 3 March 2011, the Parliament accepted his proposal to hold the elections on Sunday 12 June 2011.

Political Parties

According to the YSK's decision from 5 March 2011, the following 27 political parties are entitled to offer candidates for the general elections:

Alternative Party, Democratic Party, Democratic Left Party, Equality and Democracy Party, Fatherland Party, Freedom and Solidarity Party, Great Union Party, Independent Turkey Party, Justice and Development Party, Labour Party, Liberal Democracy Party, National Party, Nationalist and Conservative Party, Nationalist Movement Party, New Party, Peace and Democracy Party, People's Ascent Party, People's Voice Party, Republican People's Party, Rights and Equality Party, Rights and Freedom Party, True Path Party, Turkey Party, Turkish Communist Party, Welfare Party, Worker Party, Youth Party. (BB/EÖ/VK)