Election Security and Ballot Box Consolidation

The early election decision was made following the proposal of MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli, a subsequent meeting with President Erdoğan, and an agreement between the two parties. According to this, the Presidential and Parliamentary elections, which were supposed to take place in November 2019, were agreed to be held on June 24, 2018. The proposal titled “Proposal for the Renewal of the General Election for Members of Parliament and Holding the Election on June 24, 2018” was accepted by the votes of 386 members of the parliament participating in the General Assembly, including AKP Group Chairman Binali Yıldırım and MHP Group Chairman Devlet Bahçeli.
Thus, the election process for the elections, which would be a milestone in terms of holding both the presidential and parliamentary elections together and ensuring the transition to the new government system, has begun.
With the constitutional amendment accepted in the April 16 referendum through Law No. 6771, a temporary 21st article was added to the 1982 Constitution with the aim of transitioning to the new system. The article 21(A) states: "The general election for the members of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey and the Presidential election will be held on 3/11/2019. Until the election date, the duties of the members of the Grand National Assembly and the President will continue. If the Grand National Assembly decides to hold elections, the general election for the members of the Grand National Assembly and the Presidential election will be held together."
According to this provision, it was decided that the presidential and parliamentary elections would be held together on November 3, 2019. However, the Constitution did not remove the right of the Assembly to decide for early elections, and it was also stipulated that in such a case, both the parliamentary and presidential elections would be held together.
LEGAL ASPECT OF EARLY ELECTION DECISION, REASONS, AND CLAIMS OF AN EARLY ELECTION
When we look at world examples, it is seen that the terms of legislative assemblies are determined in the constitutions. However, legislative bodies always have the authority to renew their elections – i.e., to call for early elections – before the end of their term. Early elections provide voters with the opportunity to express their will earlier, hold the government accountable, punish or reward it, while giving the opposition a chance to present itself. Article 77 of the 1982 Constitution regulates that the term of the Parliament is four years, and it also gives the authority to renew elections, i.e., to call for early elections before the end of this term. Postponing elections is conditioned by the reason of war (Article 78), while the President’s authority to renew parliamentary elections is generally conditioned by the failure to form a government (Article 116). However, early elections – or the decision to renew elections – are not conditional in the Constitution. The Parliament is free to renew its elections whenever it wishes. As a result, we can say that legally, the early election decision is not restricted by any specific reason.
The decision to renew the parliamentary elections can be made by a "parliamentary decision", but it can also be made through a law. The powers of the Parliament that has decided to renew the elections continue until a new one is elected (Article 77/last).
From the adoption of the 1982 Constitution until the 2011 elections, no Parliament was able to complete its term as stipulated in the Constitution, and early elections were always held. Before the 2007 amendment, the term of the Parliament was five years according to the original version of the Constitution, but after this change, it was reduced to four years. Therefore, after the first Parliament elected in 1983, elections that were supposed to be held in 1988 were held in 1987, those supposed to be held in 1992 in 1991, those in 1996 in 1995, those in 2000 in 1999, and those in 2004 in 2002 through early election decisions. The 2007 elections were supposed to be held on time without an early election, but due to the 367 crisis in the Presidential election, the General Staff's e-memorandum, and the Constitutional Court’s annulment of the Presidential election, they were moved three months earlier, and instead of November, they were held in July. Later, a constitutional amendment was made that allowed the people to elect the president directly, and the Parliament's term was reduced to four years. After that, the 2011 elections were the first elections held on time without an early election decision in 34 years. The 2015 elections also took place on time, but the date was set for June 7 to avoid it clashing with the summer holiday.
As seen from these election dates, during the AKP period, as President Erdoğan emphasized, elections have always been held on time unless in an extraordinary situation, and there was no need for early elections. Therefore, President Erdoğan and AKP officials have consistently stated that elections will be held on time, even in the face of the recent claims of an early election.
However, it seems that the decision to renew elections was taken due to Bahçeli’s intervention and the long-standing discussions. From the statements of Devlet Bahçeli and President Erdoğan, it is understood that there are two reasons for the unexpected early election decision in 2019:
The first reason is the system problems and uncertainties caused by waiting for two more years for the constitutional amendment, which was accepted in the referendum.
The second reason is to prevent external interference in the elections and to prevent destabilizing the country by breaking the alliance between the two parties as the election process approaches.
It is understood that AKP and MHP reached a consensus on these two reasons and decided to hold early elections. Furthermore, it should be noted that the pressure this situation puts on politics, bureaucracy, and the economy has also played a decisive role in the decision.
The opposition claims that the country cannot be governed, the economy is worsening, and the ruling party wants to hold early elections before the opposition parties are prepared. However, the opposition itself has been demanding early elections for months and challenging the government. They have persistently stated that they are ready for early elections and are working as if they could enter the elections at any time. We even remember that immediately after the April 16 referendum, opposition parties were visiting each other and seeking alliances, thinking that the "no" votes formed a bloc. Many similar statements and actions confirm that the early election is not a "surprise election" for the opposition.
The claims of a "surprise election" are also not supported by constitutional and legal arrangements. There is no time limit between the date when the early election decision is taken and when the early election will be held in the Constitution. There is no upper or lower limit in either the Constitution or the election laws on this matter. Only when the President calls for early elections, there is a ninety-day limit set (Law No. 2839, Article 8). Therefore, the Parliament can determine any date that is practically possible, including the time needed by the Supreme Election Council (YSK) to make the necessary preparations, as the early election date. Moreover, the Parliamentary Election Law allows the YSK to shorten the timelines in the laws during an early election.
This period has no upper limit either. Indeed, the decision for the early election held on April 18, 1999, was taken more than ten months earlier on July 30, 1998. As a result, it is legally possible for the Parliament to set any early date as the election date within the time needed for election preparations. The Constitutional Court’s decision in 1987 also supports this.
JUNE 24 ELECTIONS AND TRANSITION TO THE PRESIDENTIAL SYSTEM
The Law No. 6771, approved by the April 16, 2017, referendum, consists of 18 articles and makes changes to approximately seventy articles of the Constitution. With this law, radical changes were made to the legislative and executive provisions of the Constitution, and important provisions concerning the judiciary were also included. Due to the significant effects of these changes, they did not come into force immediately, but according to Article 18 of Law No. 6771, it was stipulated that they would come into effect on three different dates. These dates are:
1.
April 16, 2017, the date the Law No. 6771 was accepted in the referendum.
2.
The date when the timetable for the first joint elections for the Grand National Assembly of Turkey and the Presidency begins.
3.
The date when the President starts their term following the joint elections for the Grand National Assembly of Turkey and the Presidency.
On April 16, 2017, the changes made regarding the impartiality of the judiciary, the restructuring of the Judges and Prosecutors Council, and the abolition of military courts came into effect. Additionally, the article lowering the age of candidacy to 18 and the provision eliminating the condition that the President must sever ties with their party came into effect on this date.
The second part of Law No. 6771 regarding the election timetable for the first joint elections for the Grand National Assembly of Turkey and the Presidency will come into effect. This includes provisions like:
Article 75 – The Grand National Assembly of Turkey consists of six hundred members elected by general vote.
Article 77 – The elections for the Grand National Assembly of Turkey and the Presidency will be held together every five years.
Article 101 – The President is elected directly by the people from Turkish citizens who are at least forty years old, have a higher education, and have the qualifications to be elected as a member of Parliament.
With the announcement of the election timetable by the YSK on April 26, 2018, these changes came into effect.
ADJUSTMENT TO THE NEW SYSTEM AND TRANSITION REGULATIONS
We mentioned that the constitutional amendment is extensive, affecting nearly seventy articles. The innovations brought by Law No. 6771 are entirely a change in the government system and include provisions that will deeply affect the political structure and administrative organization of the state. Therefore, political laws such as the Election Law, Political Parties Law, and the Rules of Procedure of the Parliament, as well as laws related to the administrative structure of the state affected by the abolition of the Prime Ministry and the Cabinet, must be revised to be compatible with the new system.
According to Article 17 of Law No. 6771, the necessary adjustment regulations were to be made within six months:
"Within six months from the publication of this Law, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey shall make the necessary changes to the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly and other legal arrangements required by the changes made by this Law."
However, the alignment laws could not be enacted within this six-month period. This six-month period is not a binding or punitive deadline, but rather a recommendation for the legislative body. Even though the alignment laws could not be prepared before the election process, after the system is implemented, these laws can be enacted as necessary to ensure smooth adaptation.