"Unite, unite, unite," shouted secular Turks at a demonstration urging opposition parties to join together against the Islamic-leaning ruling party in elections in July. But can those parties overcome differences and pose a robust challenge to a government that they fear intends to impose religion on society? Turkey's so-called secularist camp — a jumble of leftists, nationalists, Kurds and others with their own agendas and competing interests — is far from cohesive.
And it faces a government with a strong record of economic recovery, a devotion to EU-backed reforms that has boosted Turkey's international standing, a powerful organization at the grassroots level and supporters who might also feel an urgent need to express themselves at the polls.