Winning elections for the ninth consecutive time since it came to power over a decade ago, Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) proved once again with the Aug. 10 presidential election that it has the public support to get what it wants at the ballot box. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been its pillar; and he now becomes the first directly elected president of the country. With Erdogan moving to the country’s presidential post on Aug. 28, which constitutionally must be a neutral position, he will soon have to technically sever his organic ties with the AKP.

There is an irony there. Since Erdogan declared his candidacy, he has been giving all the signals that he won’t abide by the rule of law by divorcing himself from his party, and that his election means the people's approval of changing the parliamentary system into a presidential one — of course, one unique to Turkey, shaped by Erdogan. All that projection seems to be at risk now, while creating unprecedented opportunities for a reshaping of the political theater here.

First, Erdogan denies he and President Abdullah Gul have any divergent views about the latter’s role in the party once he concludes his tenure. “There is nothing more natural than Abdullah [Gul] to return to his, our party,” Erdogan said at Gul’s farewell reception Aug. 12. “I advise those who like to add irrelevant significance [to our decision holding the extraordinary general congress on Aug. 27] that they better go and bother the CHP [Republican People’s Party] or the MHP [Nationalist Action Party]. They are the ones who need to question what’s behind their failure.”

While Erdogan is right about the opposition, he is not able to silence the Gul supporters in the party. Party insiders who spoke to Al-Monitor expressed sincere disappointment that Erdogan did not say a word of appreciation for Gul while delivering his victory speech on Aug. 10 at his party’s headquarters in Ankara, and with the announcement of the date for the party’s extraordinary congress soon after Gul publicly declared his desire to return to active politics within the ranks of his party. To them, it was a clear signal that Erdogan prefers to sideline Gul.