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The political elections in Turkey, scheduled for May 14, will be fundamental in defining the future of the country, dominated for over twenty years by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. A decisive role will be played by younger voters, the so-called “Generation Z”
Political interviews on the street often go viral in Türkiye. The format is precise: a YouTuber walks around with a microphone and asks random passersby what they think about particular political parties or social issues. As the country moves towards its critical May 14 election, a new phenomenon has emerged: teenagers and even school-age children speaking eloquently and passionately about politics.
In a recent widely shared video , a street reporter asks a little boy how he knows so much about parliamentary politics and inflation at such a young age. “It’s thanks to our president that we have to know these things,” he replies, explaining why the depreciation of the Turkish lira against the euro made it impossible for his parents to repair his computer or buy a new one.
Young people will play a key role in Turkey’s presidential and parliamentary elections on May 14. The Turkish population is among the youngest in Europe, half of them are under 30. About 6 million new voters will be able to cast their votes for the first time this May.
Generation Z and politics
The so-called Generation Z (those born towards the end of the millennium) have often been labeled as apolitical in Turkey. However, demographic research on this generation’s views and preferences scientifically demonstrates what street interviews have shown empirically: these new voters are very much aware of pressing issues in their country and are quick to get involved politically.
According to a survey of people between the ages of 18 and 25, more than half of young Turks are not satisfied with the current government. The main problems commonly cited are poor economic conditions, unemployment and low quality education.
Young people also resent government interference in people’s lifestyles and resent restrictions on freedom of expression in the media or social media, and according to a leading Turkish pollster they tend to be more liberal than their parents on a number of social issues and are less likely to be swayed by parental voting preferences.
With Gen-Z making up a large percentage of the Turkish electorate and data showing widespread dissatisfaction with the current government, it is no surprise that both the ruling party and the opposition see youth votes as key to electoral victory .
Fight for the “hearts and minds” of young people
In a recent meeting that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held with young people, he said: “God willing, in the May 14 election, all you precious young people who vote for the first time will make us your allies.” The AKP has also nominated several young people, including 18-year-old Nisa Alptekin, daughter of a founder of the party.
The opposition coalition, known as the “Table of Six” and led by Republican People’s Party chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, is also courting the youth vote. At a recent event, he told the young people present: “Those who go to the ballot and vote for the first time will determine the fate of the Republic of Turkey.”
Among the contenders for Gen Z votes, President Erdoğan may have a little more difficulty. With the AKP in power since 2002, new voters know of no other government. While not all young people vote for the opposition, it is significant that 62.5% say that would leave Turkey if given the chance . This also includes young people who support the AKP and its coalition partners, but who likewise cite unemployment and economic hardship as reasons for wanting to move to places like Germany or the United States.
In light of the serious shortcomings of the current situation in Turkey, the AKP’s campaigns directed at Gen Z have recently been criticized for being out of touch with reality. A recent video shot in a university cafeteria has left many perplexed. The message was that young men who support the AKP must hide their political views to attract liberal women.
Another official AKP campaign video was quickly deleted from social media after viewers noticed the background music was American rapper Coolio’s 1995 hit “Gangsta’s Paradise,” which depicts a life as an outlaw on the fringes of society. This it’s not the first time that the AKP’s attempts to reach young people have backfired, in a phenomenon that scholar Lisel Hintz and I have described elsewhere as “boomer gaffes.”
The opposition, by contrast, does not use rap songs or highly visible but mostly symbolic young MPs to woo the youth vote. Kılıçdaroğlu and his allies are instead focusing the electoral campaign on the issues that concern young people most: unemployment, nepotism, lifestyle restrictions, the quality of education and the decline in purchasing power.
The role of social media
Social media has become a key battleground for opposition youth organizing their own grassroots protests. Izmir-based young graphic designer and organizer Mahir Akkoyun rose to overnight fame when he was taken into police custody on April 7, accused of insulting the president and disturbing public order over a Twitter campaign focused on the economic crisis . He had created a series of stickers designed to be posted on supermarket shelves. The stickers featured the president’s photo and the inscription: “Do you think this product costs too much? You can thank Erdoğan!”.
Platforms like TikTok also became a key part of the youth vote race when Kılıçdaroğlu and other opposition parties realized that the ruling parties had flooded the app with around 30 million users in Turkey with pro-government content . Since then, the opposition has caught up thanks to Kılıçdaroğlu’s increasingly popular videos. This shows that the opposition has invested the necessary time and effort in reaching out to young people.
Turkish youth are too politically shrewd to heed flattery and cosmetic declarations. Therefore, political parties will only be able to secure the votes of young people if they concretely address the issues that concern them most.
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