Turkey is a presidential republic with a multi-party system. Major parties are defined as political parties that received more than 7% of the votes in the latest general election and/or represented in parliament. Minor parties are defined as political parties that have fulfilled the requirements of the Supreme Election Council (Yüksek Seçim Kurulu in Turkish, abbreviated as YSK) and whose names have been listed on ballots. Forming a political party without prior permission is a constitutional right, but the Interior Ministry may delay registering a new party for years,[1][2] so the party cannot stand in elections.[3]

If the ID and serial number of a person's Turkish identity card is known, anyone can query their political party membership via the website of the General Prosecution Office of the Supreme Court of Appeal or mobile phone messages.[4][5]

Political parties represented in the Turkish Parliament

General information about the parties holding seats in the Grand National Assembly as of June 2023:[6]

# Party Leader Position Ideology MPs Metro. Mun. Municipalities Provincial
councillors
Municipal
Assemb.
1 AK PARTY Justice and Development Party
Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Right-wing Conservatism
Right-wing populism
264 / 600
15 / 30
742 / 1,355
757 / 1,272
10,173 / 20,745
2 CHP Republican People's Party
Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi
Özgür Özel Center-left Kemalism
Social democracy
129 / 600
11 / 30
241 / 1,355
184 / 1,272
4,608 / 20,745
3 DEM PARTY Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party
Halkların Eşitlik ve Demokrasi Partisi
Tulay Hatımoğulları Oruç
Tuncer Bakırhan
Center-left to left-wing Regionalism
Minority rights
57 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
4 MHP Nationalist Movement Party
Milliyetçi Hareket Partisi
Devlet Bahçeli Far-right[7] Ultranationalism
National conservatism
49 / 600
1 / 30
233 / 1,355
188 / 1,272
2,819 / 20,745
5 İYİ PARTİ Good Party
İYİ Parti
Meral Akşener Center-right to right-wing Kemalism
National conservatism
38 / 600
0 / 30
24 / 1,355
23 / 1,272
1,092 / 20,745
6 DEVA PARTİSİ Democracy and Progress Party
Demokrasi ve Atılım Partisi
Ali Babacan Center-right[12] Liberal conservatism
Pro-Europeanism
15 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
1 / 1,272
4 / 20,745
7 SAADET Felicity Party
Saadet Partisi
Temel Karamollaoğlu Right-wing National Outlook
Islamism
20 / 600
0 / 30
21 / 1,355
3 / 1,272
295 / 20,745
8 YENİDEN REFAH New Welfare Party
Yeniden Refah Partisi
Fatih Erbakan Far-right National Outlook
Islamism
5 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
5 / 20,745
9 HÜDA PAR Free Cause Party
Hür Dava Partisi
Zekeriya Yapıcıoğlu Far-right Islamic fundamentalism
Minority rights
4 / 600
0 / 30
1 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
3 / 20,745
10 TİP Workers' Party of Turkey
Türkiye İşçi Partisi
Erkan Baş Left-wing to far-left Communism
Marxism-Leninism
4 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
11 DP Democratic Party
Demokrat Parti
Gültekin Uysal Center-right Liberal conservatism
Pro-Europeanism
3 / 600
0 / 30
8 / 1,355
1 / 1,272
135 / 20,745
12 EMEP Labour Party
Emek Partisi
Ercüment Akdeniz Far-left Communism
Marxism-Leninism
2 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
13 HDP Peoples' Democratic Party
Halkların Demokratik Partisi
Pervin Buldan
Mithat Sancar
Center-left[13] to left-wing[14] Regionalism
Minority rights
2 / 600
0 / 30
6 / 1,355
101 / 1,272
1,230 / 20,745
14 DSP Democratic Left Party
Demokratik Sol Parti
Önder Aksakal Center-left Ecevitism
Social democracy
1 / 600
0 / 30
7 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
98 / 20,745

Other political parties

Other parties eligible to contest in elections (by March 2023)[15]

Party Leader Position Ideology MPs Metro. Mun. Municipalities Provincial council. Municipal Asse.
ZAFER PARTİSİ Victory Party

Zafer Partisi

Ümit Özdağ Far-right Ultranationalism

Anti-immigration

0 / 600
0 / 30
3 / 1,355
0 / 1,355
0 / 20,745
MEMLEKET Homeland Party
Memleket Partisi
Muharrem İnce Center Kemalism
Pro-Europeanism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
2 / 1,272
4 / 20,745
TKP Communist Party of Turkey
Türkiye Komünist Partisi
Kemal Okuyan Far-left Communism
Marxism–Leninism
0 / 600
0 / 30
1 / 1,355
3 / 1,272
11 / 20,745
VATAN PARTİSİ Patriotic Party
Vatan Partisi
Doğu Perinçek Left-wing Ulusalcılık
Eurasianism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
5 / 20,745
AB PARTİ Justice Unity Party
Adalet Birlik Partisi
İrfan Uzun
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
AP Justice Party
Adalet Partisi
Vecdet Öz Center-right Liberal conservatism
Kemalism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
ANAP Motherland Party
Anavatan Partisi
İbrahim Çelebi Center-right Liberal conservatism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
BTP Independent Turkey Party
Bağımsız Türkiye Partisi
Hüseyin Baş Radical center Civic nationalism
Kemalism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
GELECEK PARTİSİ Future Party
Gelecek Partisi
Ahmet Davutoğlu Center-right Conservatism
Pro-Europeanism
0 / 600
0 / 30
1 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
GENÇPARTİ Young Party
Genç Parti
Hakan Uzan Center Economic liberalism
Secularism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
HAK-PAR Rights and Freedoms Party
Hak ve Özgürlükler Partisi
Düzgün Kaplan Kurdish nationalism
Federalism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
HKP People's Liberation Party
Halkın Kurtuluş Partisi
Nurullah Ankut Far-left Communism
Left-wing nationalism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
MİLLET Nation Party
Millet Partisi
Cuma Nacar Right-wing National conservatism
Turkish nationalism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
MYP National Path Party
Milli Yol Partisi
Remzi Çayır Far-right Turkish-Islamic nationalism
Social conservatism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
SOL PARTİ Left Party
SOL Parti
Önder İşleyen Left-wing to Far-left Socialism
Left-wing populism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
TKH Communist Movement of Turkey
Türkiye Komünist Hareketi
Aysel Tekerek Far-left Communism
Marxism–Leninism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745
YTP New Turkey Party
Yeni Türkiye Partisi
Engin Yılmaz Right-wing Social conservatism
Right-wing populism
0 / 600
0 / 30
0 / 1,355
0 / 1,272
0 / 20,745

General information on other political parties registered in the Ministry of Interior:

Abbr. Party Name Turkish name Leader(s) Position Ideology Date of foundation
1920 TKP Socialist Liberation PartyToplumcu Kurtuluş Partisi İsmail Kaplan Far-leftCommunism, Marxism–Leninism 2012
SA Socialist AlternativeSosyalist Alternatif Collective leadership Far-leftSocialism, Trotskyism2013
DSİP Revolutionary Socialist Workers' PartyDevrimci Sosyalist İşçi Partisi Tuna Emren, Şenol Karakaş Far-left Trotskyism1997
DİP Revolutionary Workers' PartyDevrimci İşçi Partisi Ömer Sungur Savran Far-left Trotskyism2007
LDP Liberal Democratic PartyLiberal Demokrat Parti Gültekin Tırpancı Center to center-right Classical liberalism1994
TSİP Socialist Workers' Party of TurkeyTürkiye Sosyalist İşçi Partisi Turgut Koçak Far-leftCommunism, Anti-revisionism1993
YURT-P Homeland PartyYurt Partisi Sadettin TantanCenter-rightConservatism2002
TURAN Great Turan Movement PartyBüyük Turan Hareketi Partisi Varol EsenFar-rightNationalism, Turanism 2014
ÖTÜKEN Ötüken Union PartyÖtüken Birliği Partisi Çağatay Korkut KörüklüFar-rightNationalism, Pan-Turkism 2017
ULUSAL National PartyUlusal Parti Gökçe Fırat ÇulhaoğluFar-leftNationalism 2010
MMP National Struggle PartyMilli Mücadele Partisi Ahmet KayaNationalism
Kemalism
2014
- Green PartyYeşiller Partisi Emine Özkan (female spokesperson)
Koray Doğan Urbarlı (male spokesperson)
Left-wingEcofeminism2020
- Green Left PartyYeşil Sol Parti Eylem Tuncaelli, Naci SönmezLeft-wingGreen politics2012
- Women's PartyKadın Partisi Fatma Benal Yazgan Feminism 2014
- Centre PartyMerkez Parti Abdurrahim KarslıCenter to center-rightLiberal2014

Former

Inactive parties

The following parties are inactive, and they are not listed in the active political parties list by the Supreme Court of Appeal.[16]

Party Name Turkish name Abbr. Ideology Position
Democracy Party of Turkey & KurdistanTürkiye Kürdistan Demokrasi Partisi T-KDP Kurdish nationalismBig tent
Alternative and Change PartyAlternatif ve Değişim Partisi AL PARTİ ConservativeRight-wing
Nation and Justice PartyMillet ve Adalet Partisi MİLAD
People's Ascent PartyHalkın Yükselişi Partisi HYP Social democracyCentre-left
Turkey's Change MovementTürkiye Değişim Hareketi TDH Social democracyCentre-left
Social Reconciliation Reform and Development PartyToplumsal Uzlaşma Reform ve Kalkınma Partisi TURK-P Nationalism
Independent Republican PartyBağımsız Cumhuriyet Partisi BCP Nationalism
Electronic Democracy PartyElektronik Demokrasi Partisi e-Parti LiberalSingle-issue

Defunct and historical parties

These are some of the parties that were dismantled because of their internal dynamics, mergers, inability to find electoral base or through governmental intervention, for instance following the Turkish coups d'état.

Defunct and historical parties
Party Name Position Notes
Alternative Party (Alternatif Parti) Right-wing Conservative
Participatory Democracy Party (Katılımcı Demokrasi Partisi) Centre-left dissolved in 2019
Anatolia Party (Anadolu Partisi) Centre-left dissolved in 2015
Democratic Left People's Party (Demokratik Sol Halk Partisi) Centre-left dissolved in 2010
New Turkey Party (2002) (Yeni Türkiye Partisi) Centre-left joined CHP in 2004
Social Democracy Party (SODEP) (Sosyal Demokrat Parti) Centre-left merged with People's Party to form Social Democratic Populist Party (SHP) in 1985
People's Party (Halkçı Parti) merged with SODEP to form Social Democratic Populist Party (SHP) in 1985
Social Democratic Populist Party (Sosyaldemokrat Halkçı Parti) Centre-left merged with CHP in 1995
Socialist Democracy Party (Sosyalist Demokrasi Partisi) Left-wing merged to Peoples' Democratic Party in 2015
People's Communist Party of Turkey (Halkın Türkiye Komünist Partisi) Far-left dissolved in 2017
Republican Villagers Nation Party (Cumhuriyetçi Köylü Millet Partisi) Nationalist merger of two parties, replaced by MHP in 1969
Nationalist Task Party (Milliyetçi Çalışma Partisi) Nationalist replaced by MHP in 1992
Nationalist Democracy Party (Milliyetçi Demokrasi Partisi) Nationalist dissolved 1986
Rights and Equality Party (Hak ve Eşitlik Partisi) Nationalist, Populist dissolved 2019
Greens of Turkey (Yeşiller Partisi) Green politics merged with EDP to form Greens and the Left Party of the Future (Yeşiller ve Sol Gelecek Partisi) in 2012.
Equality and Democracy Party (Eşitlik ve Demokrasi Partisi) Green politics merged with the Greens to form Greens and the Left Party of the Future (Yeşiller ve Sol Gelecek Partisi) in 2012.
Justice Party (Adalet Partisi) Conservative, right-wing closed on 12 September 1980
Communist Party (Komünist Parti) Far-left Member of United June Movement, Initiative of Communist and Workers' Parties and International Meeting of Communist and Workers' Parties. Founded in 2014, Dissolved in 2017
Democrat Party (Demokrat Parti) Centre-right 1946-1961
Nation Party (Millet Partisi) Right-wing 1948–1953 and 1962–1977
New Party (Yeni Parti) dissolved 2012
Democratic Party (Demokrat Parti) Centre-right 1970-1980
Democratic Center Party (Demokratik Merkez Partisi) Right-wing merged into DYP on September 14, 1991
True Path Party (Doğru Yol Partisi) Centre-right merged with Motherland Party into Democrat Party (Turkey, 2007) in 2007
New Turkey Party (1961) (Yeni Türkiye Partisi) Right-wing joined to Justice Party in 1973
People's Voice Party (Halkın Sesi Partisi) Right-wing dissolved in 2012
Turkey Party (Türkiye Partisi) Centre-right dissolved in 2012
Liberal Republican Party (Serbest Cumhuriyet Fırkası) Centre-right, Liberal dissolved itself in 1930
Liberty Party (Hürriyet Partisi) Liberal joined CHP in 1958
National Salvation Party (Milli Selâmet Partisi) Sunni Islamist closed on 12 September 1980
National Development Party (Milli Kalkınma Partisi) Sunni Islamist

Banned parties

These are some of the parties that were banned through extraordinary courts or the Constitutional Court of Turkey.

Banned parties
Party Name Position Notes
Fatherland Party (Vatan Partisi) Left-wing banned in 1954
Workers Party of Turkey (Türkiye İşçi Partisi) Far-left banned in 1971, represented in the national senate in early 1960s. (1961–1987) eventually merged with the Communist Party of Turkey in 1987.
United Communist Party of Turkey (Türkiye Birleşik Komünist Partisi) Far-left banned in 1991; ban found contrary to Article 11 (freedom of association) of the European Convention on Human Rights, 1998 (1987–1991)
Labour Party (Emek Partisi) Far-left ban found contrary to Article 11 (freedom of association) of the European Convention on Human Rights, 2005, and re-established
Progressive Republican Party (Terakkiperver Cumhuriyet Fırkası) Conservative banned on 3 June 1925 (1924–1925)
National Order Party (Milli Nizam Partisi) Sunni Islamist banned on 20 May 1971 (1970–1971)
Welfare Party (Refah Partisi) Sunni Islamist banned on 16 January 1998; (1983-1998)

ban upheld by European Convention on Human Rights 2003

Virtue Party (Fazilet Partisi) Sunni Islamist banned on 22 June 2001; (1998-2001) ECHR case withdrawn by applicant 2005
People's Labor Party (Halkın Emek Partisi) Kurdish nationalist banned in July 1993 (1990-1993)
Democracy Party (Demokrasi Partisi) Kurdish nationalist banned on 16 June 1994; found contrary to Article 11 (freedom of association) of the European Convention on Human Rights, 2002 (1993-1994)
People’s Democracy Party (Halkın Demokrasi Partisi) Kurdish nationalist banned on 13 March 2003; found contrary to Article 11 (freedom of association) of the European Convention on Human Rights, 2010 (1994-2003)
Democratic Society Party (Demokratik Toplum Partisi) Kurdish nationalist banned on 11 December 2009; ECHR case ongoing (2005-2009)
Great Turkey Party (Büyük Türkiye Partisi) Turkish nationalist banned in 1983

See also

Notes

    References

    1. "We are starting the legal process to use our democratic right!". Green Party (Turkey). Retrieved 2021-03-22.
    2. Ergin, Sedat. "Türkiye'de bir Yeşiller Partisi kurmaya kalktığınızda" [When you try to establish a Green Party in Turkey]. Hürriyet (in Turkish). Retrieved 2021-12-12.
    3. Keyman, Fuat (2022-01-22). "Yeşiller Partisi niye engelleniyor ve Muhalefet ne yapmalı?" [Why is the Green Party blocked and what should the Opposition do?]. PolitikYol (in Turkish). Retrieved 2022-01-27.
    4. "Duties Relating to Political Parties". Court of Cassation (Turkey). Retrieved 22 March 2021.
    5. "Siyasi Parti Üyeliği".
    6. "Türki̇ye Büyük Mi̇llet Mecli̇si̇".
    7. "Babacan ve arkadaşları parti için son düzlükte: Yeni oluşumun ilk hedefi ana akım siyaset olmak".
    8. "Turkey's Ali Babacan to offer a detailed reform strategy in his new party programme". Ahval. 27 December 2019.
    9. "Could Turkey's new parties change the political balance?" (PDF). Retrieved 2023-10-17.
    10. "İZLENİM | DEVA Partisi'nin ilk gününden izlenimler: İslamcı değil merkez sağcı". 11 March 2020.
    11. [8][9][10][11]
    12. Oxford Analytica (2019). Turkish leader will assess and address opposition wins.
    13. Celep, Ödül (2014). "Can the Kurdish Left contribute to Turkey's democratization?" (PDF). Insight Turkey. 16 (3): 166.
    14. "Seçime kaç siyasi parti katılabilecek? Sayı bilgisi YSK'dan geldi". NTV (in Turkish). Archived from the original on 11 March 2023. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
    15. "Faaliyette Olan Siyasi Partiler". The Supreme Court of Appeal. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
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