Wary of his sagging popular support and economic turmoil ahead of elections next year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appears ready to shower “election candies” on various segments of voters at the risk of wrecking public finances.
Turkey’s next presidential and parliamentary polls — in June 2023 at the latest — are looming as the toughest challenge yet to Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party, in power since November 2002, as popular grievances grow, fueled by an inflation topping 80% and its many social ramifications.