2011 Turkish general election

General elections were held in Turkey on 12 June 2011 to elect the 550 members of Grand National Assembly. In accordance to the result of the constitutional referendum held in 2007, the elections were held four years after the previous elections in 2007 instead of five.

The result was a third consecutive victory for the incumbent Justice and Development Party (AKP), with its leader Recep Tayyip Erdoğan being re-elected as Prime Minister for a third term with 49.8% of the vote and 327 MPs. This represented an increase of 3.2% since the 2007 Turkish general election and an 11.4% rise since the 2009 Turkish local elections. The victory was attributed to the strong sustained economic recovery after the Great Recession as well as the completion of several projects such as the İzmir commuter railway, inter-city high speed rail lines and airports in Amasya, Gökçeada and Gazipaşa (Antalya).

The Republican People's Party (CHP) also saw an increase in its popular vote share, receiving 26.0% and winning 135 seats. The Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) received 13.0% and won 53 seats, representing a slight loss of support since 2007. The elections were the first to be contested by the CHP's new leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who replaced Deniz Baykal in 2010.

The elections were marred by violence originating mainly from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is recognised as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the European Union and the United States.

Background

Emboldened by the 2010 constitutional referendum, AKP leaders said they would create a new constitution after the 2011 elections.

On 3 March 2011 Parliament approved a ruling party proposal to set 12 June as the date for the general elections. The proposal was submitted by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) on 21 February and was approved unanimously in the Parliament's General Assembly. In its proposal, the AKP pointed to the appropriateness of 12 June as the election date considering the June dates for the placement test for high schools (SBS) and the university entrance exam (LYS). Seeking high voter turnout, the heat during the summer was also considered during the choice of date.

Electoral system

In accordance with a law approved by Parliament last year that made changes to Turkey's election laws, Turkish voters encountered some new rules and reforms during the general election of 2011. The changes sought to bring Turkish election campaign regulations up to European standards.
*The age for parliamentary eligibility was reduced from 30 to 25.
*Wooden ballot boxes were replaced by new ballot boxes made out of hard plastic that were transparent, shatterproof, and resistant to heat.
*Voting booths were upgraded to a stronger, safer, and more portable model.
*Voting envelopes were made larger and had different colors for each matter that was being voted upon.
*Campaigning was now allowed until two hours after sunset. Under the previous law, campaigning after sundown was forbidden.
*Citizens were able to vote without official identification as long as they could provide their identity number.
*Anyone who prevented someone from casting their vote would receive three to five years in prison.

Turkish voters living abroad will have to wait for another election to be able to cast their votes in the countries in which they are residing due to the inability to institute electronic voting. Turkish voters abroad thus needed to cast their votes at customs gates.

Regions

The number of MPs by province was redistributed according to the most recent population data. The number of deputies in Parliament for Istanbul was increased by 15, for Ankara by three and İzmir by two; Antalya, Diyarbakır, Van and Şırnak each received one more seat in Parliament. Ankara's two regions yielded 15 and 16 deputies. Istanbul, made up of three regions, elected 30, 27 and 28 deputies. İzmir, with two regions, elected 13 deputies each from both regions.

The number of MPs by province

* Adana 14
* Adıyaman 5
* Afyonkarahisar 5
* Ağrı 4
* Amasya 3
* Ankara, region 1, 15
* Ankara, region 2, 16
* Antalya 14
* Artvin 7
* Balıkesir 8
* Bilecik 3
* Bursa 18
* Çanakkale 2
* Çorum 4
* Denizli 7
* Diyarbakır 11
* Edirne 3
* Elazığ 5
* Erzincan 2
* Erzurum 6
* Eskişehir 6
* Gaziantep 12
* Giresun 3
* Hatay 10
* Isparta 4
* Mersin 11
* Istanbul, region 1, 30
* Istanbul, region 2, 27
* Istanbul, region 3, 28
* İzmir, region 1, 13
* İzmir, region 2, 13
* Kars 3
* Kastamonu 3
* Kayseri 9
* Kırklareli