Bahceli: Erdogan renomination is the MHP demand
Devlet Bahceli, leader of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), at the first meeting of the party’s parliamentary group in the new legislative term, called for the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) to decide to renew the elections and hold them in 2028, and announced that Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s re-nomination for the presidency is the party’s wish and demand.
At this meeting, Bahceli, citing Article 116 of the Turkish Constitution, said: “In order for President Erdogan to be able to run once again, parliament must decide to renew the elections at an appropriate time and with maximum consensus.” He added: “The renewed elections should be held in 2028.”
In another part of his speech, the MHP leader stated: “Let the presidential candidate of the People’s Alliance once again be Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan; this is our wish and demand.” Emphasizing that the necessary legal, political, and social ground for this is available, he noted that renewing the elections in 2028 “will preserve stability and predictability and help end unnecessary debates and strengthen economic confidence.”
Continuing, Bahceli referred to the challenges ahead at the domestic, regional, and international levels and said: “Managing this difficult period requires prudence and experience, and this experience exists in the person of Mr. Erdogan and within the framework of the presidential system and the institutionalization of the People’s Alliance.” He described the political formula and slogan for the next five years as follows: “Erdogan in the executive, the Nationalist Movement Party in the legislature, the People’s Alliance in Turkey, and the Century of Turkey in the world.”
Erdogan has served two presidential terms since 2014. According to Article 116 of the Turkish Constitution, if parliament decides to renew elections during the president’s second term, the president can run once again. The People’s Alliance, led by the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and supported by the MHP, holds the necessary parliamentary majority to make such a decision.
