SUHAM AKMAN

News Center- Socio-Political Field Research Center (Turkish: Sosyo Politik Saha Araştırmaları Merkezi) is a non-government organization carrying out researches on the decision-making process for the solution of social problems based on scientific researches. The center also holds panels, conferences, workshops, and events in order to contribute to the formation of the “common mind” in society. The center conducted a survey between September 10 and 22, 2021 to determine the intention of voters in Turkey. The survey was conducted with 2.000 participants from Istanbul, Ankara, Adana, İzmir, Bursa, Muğla, Konya, Samsun, Trabzon, Antalya, Mersin, Erzurum, Muş, Ağrı, Kars, Diyarbakır, Şanlı Urfa, Mardin, Batman, Van and Siirt. The center asked many questions about the socio-economic status of the participants. Yüksel Genç, the Coordinator of the Socio-Political Field Research Center, shared the results of the survey with us.

Talking about the ongoing economic crisis in Turkey, Yüksel Genç said, “People have suffered the most from economic crisis and unemployment in the last two years. All segments, Turks, Kurds, Alevis, women, and men, have been negatively affected by the economic crisis. Our last survey reveals that the economic crisis is of top priority for both men and women. The participants of the survey also concern about the Kurdish question, the current state of the legal system, authoritarianism, and democratization problems caused by the presidential system.”

“4 in 5 women don’t feel safe”

The survey also reveals that four in five women don’t feel safe in Diyarbakır. “Four in five female participants told us that they don’t feel safe in the country. And this shows us that women are most affected by the crisis in Turkey,” Yüksel Genç emphasized.

“AKP has lost voters”

“AKP has lost a significant number of voters due to the crisis in the country,” Yüksel Genç said, “According to our last survey; the AKP has lost 10% of its voters across Turkey. It has lost 12% of voters in the region (Kurdish region) due to its politics in the region. The most important supporters of the AKP in the region were female voters for many years. The AKP had more female voters than other political parties. But our two surveys in the last two years show that the AKP has lost female voters. The impact of the economic crisis on this is oblivious. The women don’t see the AKP as a solution center anymore. The AKP has lost female voters for its policies on the Kurdish question.”

“Women are aware of politics”

“Femicides and suicides among women have increased in the recent years. The increase in the use of drugs and forced prostitution rates also affect the votes of women in the region. Women accuse the current ruling party because women are aware of the link between the abolition of the Istanbul Convention, the policy of impunity, and the conservative authoritarian power. The women in the region are also aware of the link between increasing femicides, suicides, and security policies. The awareness directs women to vote against the government. This is important because a political party that loses the support of women has no chance to come to power.”

According to the last survey conducted by the center, the AKP has lost its votes while CHP (Republican People's Party) and HDP (Peoples’ Democratic Party) have increased their votes.