Turkey's voters will elect their mayors, city council representatives and mukhtars (leaders of neighborhoods and villages) come March 31. But how "free" will the elections be?
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s coalition, formed between his Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), is branding the elections a matter of survival, assigning to it all the fervently militaristic attributes of a war. On Jan. 11, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu sent a memo to governors and security forces in 81 cities titled “Election Measures.” It warns, “Remarks [by anyone] that attempt to manipulate the results of the elections will not be allowed.” How this will be prevented isn't specified, though the memo promises — or threatens — close monitoring.
