One of those injured in June 5 bombing of HDP election rally casts their vote.
The Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) made significant gains in Turkey's general election Sunday, surpassing the 10 percent threshold to enter parliament and securing 80 of 550 seats in the country鈥檚 legislature. The HDP鈥檚 electoral success, which many see as a turning point in the country's political system, was partially the result of it鈥檚 new-found support from within Turkey's non-Kurdish liberal constituency. The party built on its traditional base, receiving votes from leftists and liberals, as well as tactical votes from broader bases of opponents to the ruling AKP party.
After the elections, HDP Chairman Selahattin Demirtas delivered a speech to his supporters describing the elections as a 鈥渧ictory of the oppressed.鈥
The HDP has represented the progressive Kurdish nationalist movement in Turkey, combining leftist-secularism with an alternative democratic political platform, known as democratic confederalism. The doctrine, which was elaborated by Kurdish Workers Party leader Abdullah Ocalan, calls for the installation of locally-based participatory structures, including popular people鈥檚 councils that function as micro-autonomous governments.
鈥淲e will establish democratic models of decentralization to involve all ethnic identities and to ensure their self-administration. Through regional assemblies, we will switch into a decentralized system,鈥 the HDP鈥檚 electoral manifesto reads.
The party鈥檚 program also promises to include the creation of women and youth ministries, the lowering of the voting age to 16, the end of compulsory religious education, raising the minimum wage, and an abolishing of special courts and the National Security Council.
The governance model espoused by HDP, which has already been applied to regions governed by the Kurdish left-wing groups in Syria鈥檚 north, successfully appealed to voters beyond the party鈥檚 traditional Kurdish constituency. The HDP鈥檚 electoral success 鈥 in spite of a bombing campaign against the leftists 鈥 marks a positive step for the integration of their proposals into national political debate, which is precisely what the party is looking to do. Following the parliamentary gains, the HDP will have the opportunity to influence domestic policy, while also having the chance to act as voice for Turkey鈥檚 most under-represented sectors.
[Reprinted from .]
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