The Effects of Granting the Right of External Voting to the Diaspora Policies of AKP and CHP

Abstract

By granting the right to vote in general elections in 2014 for the Turkish diaspora, diaspora policies of political parties in Turkey have gained crucial importance, especially considering the rate of abroad votes form five percent of the total votes. In this study, I will try to answer the question of how the granting of the right to vote affected the main parties’ (Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi – AKP and Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi - CHP ) diaspora policies. First of all, I start by introducing the Turkish diaspora. Followingly this, I will mention the history of the Turkish diaspora’s right of external vote. Thirdly, I will analyze the parties' election manifestos which they publish their manifestos before the elections in the general elections of 2011, 2015, and 2018. The reason behind selecting these specific elections is to reveal the alteration of these two main parties' diaspora policies since these elections are the last election before the granting of the external vote and the first two general elections afterward. Within the scope of this literature review and document analysis, the issue is analyzed in two perspectives within the framework of the concepts of external voting, election district, foreign policy, diaspora institution, culture and integration, political participation, and education.