Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan can thank his nationalist ally for his re-election. His reliance on the party, which shares his antagonism toward the West, didn’t end with Sunday’s win.
Erdogan secured a mandate to govern with sweeping new powers, winning an unofficial 52 percent of the vote. But his AK Party failed to win a majority in the parliamentary elections that were also held on Sunday, unexpectedly receiving 7 percentage points fewer votes than in the November 2015 balloting. That means he needs his nationalist MHP partner to push through laws.
