"Extinguish the lamp that you light with your own hands...”

In a rather tragic turn of events, the 100-year-old Republican People's Party (CHP), the founding party of the Republic of Turkey, found itself in a precarious situation when its presidential candidates failed to garner sufficient votes in the first round of elections. This led to an unprecedented 8-day period of uncertainty, with the party ultimately deciding to undergo a radical change in theme and style. The opposition candidate, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, made two crucial commitments: firstly, to never cooperate with terrorist organizations, and secondly, to take a firm stance on expelling refugees, particularly Syrians. Kılıçdaroğlu also urged voters to turn out for the elections on the 28th.

The leader of the second-largest opposition party, Meral Akşener, characterized the upcoming election as a referendum on the fate of the country, attempting to dampen the enthusiasm of voters and seemingly achieving some success. For the CHP, a party with a 100-year-old legacy, the most disheartening aspect was the possibility of 8 million party members and supporters abstaining from voting. Various factors contributed to this apathy, including selfishness and indifference among voters who seemed to care only for themselves, as well as a lack of concern for the country's fate. The fickleness of these voters, who shifted their allegiance from one CHP leader to another, further exacerbated the situation. This explains Meral Akşener's grassroots campaign, akin to the recent efforts by Azerbaijani voters, which aimed to address this issue.

The opposition bloc failed to adequately analyze the significance of the "refugee issue" brought about by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), which opened the country's borders and spent an estimated $300 billion, creating logistical and security challenges. The opposition only recognized the threat to Turkey's national security posed by this problem after analyzing the results of the first round of elections. Consequently, they focused their propaganda efforts on this issue for a period of 10 days.

The involvement of Professor Umid Ozdag and Sinan Ogan, who successfully brought the issue of Syrian refugees to the forefront of national attention, played a role in this shift. Sinan Ogan, who initially supported a candidate aiming to dismantle the opposition, lost favor with voters due to his wavering stance, reminiscent of the situation in Azerbaijan. In response, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu sought the support of Professor Ozdag, securing at least a 2% increase in support.

The agreement between Kılıçdaroğlu and Professor Özdağ raised questions about the response of the pro-Kurdish party and its voter base. However, the People's Democracy Party promptly declared its resolute support for Kılıçdaroğlu in the second round, indicating that expanding the alliance across political institutions posed no significant challenges.

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, a seasoned figure in Turkish politics and public administration, failed to win the first round of elections by a narrow margin of 0.5%. In the face of these developments, Erdoğan followed a particular strategy. He appeared more confident in the second round, though it would be inaccurate to say that the opposition's attacks did not affect him. Erdoğan continued to propagate the claim that Kılıçdaroğlu collaborated with terrorist organizations, even facing a lawsuit from the leader of the main opposition party. Similarly to the first round, Erdoğan aimed to secure support from nationalist-conservative groups in Anatolia and the Black Sea region.

Despite the opposition's energized campaign, which instilled hope among its supporters, the question still lingered as to whether they could bridge the 2.5 million vote gap between Erdoğan and Kılıçdaroğlu. One could pose the question: "Will Mr. Erdoğan, the founder of the state on July 9, 2018, lose to the opposition in the first election?" Alternatively, one might ask: "Will the 8 million voters connected to the CHP, in one way or another, overlook a complete change in the country's governing system?" The significance of May 28, 105 years after the crucial events in the history of Azerbaijan, loomed large for the Republic of Turkey.