The upcoming November 2019 presidential election has once more underpinned political polarization and the struggle between political parties in the country. The political strategies of parties from different blocs either overlap or have clashed. In this politically tense atmosphere, Turkey has observed rapprochement between ideologically close political parties. In response to growing nationalist sentiments, the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) have converged their parties by aligning under one roof. It has long been asked if the second-largest party in Parliament, the center-left Republican People’s Party (CHP), would follow this trend or opt for precious loneliness.
For the last two years, Turkey has visibly altered its interpretation of world affairs, particularly in foreign policy. This has also found repercussions at home. As nationalism has gained momentum due to Operation Euphrates Shield and Operation Olive Branch in northern Syria, there has been a mingling of ideologically adjacent parties. This has naturally led to the alliance of right-wing parties to start talking about possible collaboration. However, one cannot talk about the same convergence between left-wing parties in Turkey. At this point, we have detected three major reasons behind this dissension.
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