What Do People Think About the Elections in Urfa?

While general elections which will be held on June 7, 2015 are coming closer we were in Urfa province on our Southeastern Anatolia tour. We talked to the voters.

Election campaign posters of both Justice and Development Party (AKP) and Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) covered the walls of the city but it doesn’t bother anyone.

We met quite a few saying they voted for AKP before but they wouldn’t do now. The reasons behind were jam tomorrow, unemployment etc. The most evident reason was AKP’s policy for the Syrian refugees.

It was thought that if HDP passed the election threshold, they would gain five deputies and AKP would lose two deputies to MHP and CHP.

“When Arabs diminish AKP falls”

A middle aged man supporting AKP told it was a failing of AKP not to have an Arab deputy candidate: “When Arabs diminish AKP falls. HDP, Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and Republican People’s Party (CHP) have Arab deputy candidates.”

“Arabs love Erdoğan but they would mind general elections’ candidates. There is a possibility for the votes to shift towards MHP.”

He added he had Syrian relatives and he was trying to find home for them.

He indicated like many people in the city that Syrian refugees had been working for less money but it was not Syrians’ fault but ours because our people didn’t work.

 “AKP is a lesser evil”

We met a recently wed young woman in the park. Both she and her husband were jobless.

“AKP is a lesser evil. Some people vote for AKP, others vote for Peace and Democracy Party (BDP). Only when there is an election, candidates pace around. After the election, there is no one left.

 “Even one of 163 projects haven’t been carried out”

A young man supporting HDP said “Even one of 163 projects haven’t been carried out. I will vote for HDP. Hopefully, they will pass the threshold and there will be no more cats around the transformer units.” *

 “I disfavor AKP now because of Syrians”

 We talked to four young women. They didn’t have any job.

“Employment of women is so little. My husband doesn’t let me work. Even if he let, I wouldn’t earn much.”

Women were AKP voters. One of them said she once voted for AKP but she would vote for independent candidate in the forthcoming election. She told she changed her mind due to financial difficulties, unaffordable bills, unemployment etc. 

“We don’t like Syrians. There is always noisy quarrel.” A friend of her added “Look at this place and you’ll see.”

Complainant woman told she disfavored AKP because of Syrians. One of the women interrupted “We love AKP, It’s a good party.”

One of four said “I will vote for AKP out of spite. Kurds say the terrorists are martyrs.” When asked if she really heard this expression from Kurdish politicians she said she didn’t hear from the politicians but people around.

The youngest woman commentated most of the girls didn’t go to school. “I dropped out when I was 16. My father didn’t want me to go because there were sexual harassment cases in the school.”

Other women agreed the reason of poverty was because of girls not going to school. 

They warned me not to forget to write about the women’s rights. They implied they couldn’t get financial aid for their children.

“I’m hesitant between HDP and AKP”

A young man said he had voted for AKP until now but he was hesitant between HDP and AKP for coming election. He added he voted for Selahattin Demirtaş in presidential election “I wanted people not to see Kurds as minority.” He stated he wasn’t glad with works of AKP municipality.

A middle aged woman:

“There are shoe boxes stuffed with millions of money (during bribery and corruption operation related to the ministries) but there isn’t justice. I don’t feel safe. Prosecutors and judges have been jailed. I don’t want AKP to be the ruling party again. Syrians are breaking the peace. There is a huge cultural gap. They even don’t have any shoes to wear.

 “Merkez sağ CHP’ye kaydı”

We came across the opening of CHP’s election bureau and talked to one of people supporting CHP:

“After the year 2002, CHP haven’t got any deputy from Urfa. Among the deputy candidates from CHP, people come from Felicity Party (Saadet Partisi) and True Path Party (Doğru Yol Partisi). CHP is a center-right party now.” (BK/BD)

* This tour has been made with the help of coordinatorship of P24.

* Energy Minister Taner Yıldız blamed night power outages on a cat during local elections and said "I am not joking, friends, a cat walked into a transformer unit. That’s why there was a power cut. It’s not the first time this has happened."

Click here to read this article in Turkish