"Turkey's election
AK all over again
It was an impressive victory for Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development (AK) party. What will he do with it?
Jun 16th 2011 | ANKARA AND ISTANBUL | from the print edition
THERE was a decided feeling of déjà vu when Turkey’s prime minister gave a victory speech on the balcony of his Justice and Development (AK) party’s Ankara headquarters after the June 12th election. When Recep Tayyip Erdogan was returned to single-party rule with a 47% voting share in 2007, he made identical-sounding pledges: to embrace those who did not vote for him, to mollify the opposition, to write a new constitution, not to interfere in secular Turks’ lifestyles, and to make peace with the Kurds. This time voters gave Mr Erdogan 50%, making him the first Turkish leader to win three elections in a row—and to increase his vote share each time. Turnout was high (87%) and the polls were unmarred by violence or fraud."
More:Turkey's election: AK all over again | The Economist
