One political event to be noted as relevant from a gender and sexuality perspective was the electoral defeat of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on June 7th 2015. His party suffered a significant setback by losing its 13-year-old majority in this recent general election and the result prompted several analyses across the worldwide media. Two aspects are emphasized in these analyses. The first is that the electoral results compromised Erdogan’s ambition to amplify his power and extend his rule over the country. The second is what is more relevant from SPW point of view is that one of winners at the election – the Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) – has during the campaign openly advocated for women and LGBT rights as it has also called for the rights of ethnic and religious minorities. Before we are able to examine more in depth the implications of the Turkish unexpected political shift we can share with you a collection of articles that combine both material published by the mainstream media and analyses that look more deeply into the topic.
First Thoughts on the Elections in Turkey: A Roundtable – Jadaliyya
Turkey’s Diyarbakir hopes for ‘a new era’ – Aljazeera
Turkey election: Kurds, women, gays put faith in upstart party – BBC
Erdoğan concedes no party has mandate after shock Turkish vote – The Guardian
Turkey’s election is a blow to Erdogan and a victory for Kurds – Washington Post