Unlike the easily predictable August presidential election, the June 7 elections are rather suspenseful. Pundits agree on a few facts: The pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) is on the rise and the Justice and Development Party (AKP) has lost the support of some of its loyal allies — most importantly the Kurds — due to campaign mistakes and political and economic failures.
First and foremost, the AKP’s policy failures regarding the Kurdish peace process have been paramount since Recep Tayyip Erdogan became president. Al-Monitor consulted numerous scholars, Kurdish activists and politicians who all agreed that Kurdish support for the AKP is dwindling. Since Al-Monitor columnist Fehim Tastekin’s report on how Kurdish and Arab tribes in the southeast have abandoned the AKP, it has only worsened.
