ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The leader of Turkey’s far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) on Friday urged President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to run for re-election, despite a constitutional ban on an additional term for the incumbent.
“The Turkish nation is in great need of Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who draws the road map of the new century,” said Devlet Bahceli.
He was reacting to comments from his ally, Erdogan, who on Thursday said that he has “no interest in being re-elected or running for office again,” and that the push for a new constitution is “not for ourselves, but for our country,” according to state-run Anadolu Agency.
Turkey is scheduled to hold a presidential election no later than 2028.
Erdogan has led Turkey for 22 years, first elected as prime minister in 2003 and then as president since 2014. He is currently barred from running again unless the constitution is amended.
Under Article 101 of Turkey’s Constitution, a president may serve a maximum of two terms. However, Article 116 allows a third run if early elections are called by the parliament during the second term. A 2017 constitutional referendum granted Erdogan expanded powers but maintained the two-term presidential limit.
In his speech on Thursday, Erdogan said that Turkey requires a new constitution due to ongoing global and domestic changes and as the country is entering a new era.
“We no longer need a constitution put forward by coup plotters, but one drafted by civilians,” he said, referring to the constitution that was ratified after the 1980 military coup.
To call another referendum, Erdogan would need the support of 360 of the parliament’s 600 members, but he currently has backing from only 321, including MHP's seats. With 400 votes, he could amend the constitution directly.
Bahceli said that Erdogan’s work as president is not finished: “There are many more services that our president can provide.”
Erdogan’s recent effort to end the decades-long conflict with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has been seen by some as an attempt to gain Kurdish backing for a new constitution.
