ANKARA (Reuters) – Paving the way for Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to run for a fourth term in office is “on our agenda”, the spokesman for the president’s ruling party said on Monday, adding that the important factor was whether the people wanted it.
Erdogan, modern Turkey’s longest-serving leader, has been in power for more than two decades, first as a premier and later as president. Under Turkey’s presidential term limits he is in his final term of office unless there is a constitutional amendment or parliament calls an early election.
He was first elected president in 2014 under a parliamentary system, and was later re-elected in 2018 and 2023 following some constitutional amendments by his ruling AK Party (AKP) and their nationalist MHP allies to impose an executive presidency.
Asked by reporters about an exchange between a singer and Erdogan at the weekend in which Erdogan responded to a question about running for a new term by saying: “I am in if you are”, AKP spokesman Omer Celik said the AKP was pleased that the issue had been brought on the agenda.
“As those of us who march with our President, it is on our agenda,” he said at a press conference in Ankara. “We will see about a formula. In politics, one year is a very short time, one day is very long. What is important is that our people want it,” he added.
“When we look at events transpiring around us, is visible at every opportunity how important our president’s knowledge and political will is for our country,” he added.
In November, MHP leader Devlet Bahceli floated the idea of a constitutional amendment to allow the president to run again in elections set for 2028.
A constitutional change can be put to a referendum if 360 lawmakers in the 600-seat parliament back it. An early election also needs the support of 360 MPs.
AKP and its allies have 321 seats.
(Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu, Ece Toksabay and Huseyin Hayatsever; Editing by Toby Chopra)
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