A sea of ??umbrellas and hoods at his feet, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the Turkish opposition candidate who will challenge Recep Tayyip Erdogan on May 14 at the polls, promises with a smile “the return of spring”.
This heavy rain which he finds “pretty” falls however without stopping on the crowd come to listen, Tuesday in Canakkale (north-west), the discreet politician of 74 years whose campaign posters announce on azure background: “I am Kemal, I’m coming!”.
The choice of Canakkale (north-west) owes nothing to chance, for Kemal Kilicdaroglu, president of the Republican People’s Party (CHP) heir to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.
It was here, at the entrance to the Dardanelles Strait, that in 1915 the future founder of modern Turkey, then a young commander, distinguished himself against the Allied forces, telling his troops: “I do not order you to attack, I order you to die!”
Nothing like this on the stage set up in the city center, framed by the Turkish flag and giant portraits of Mustafa Kemal and the candidate.
The latter presents himself flanked by the two stars of the CHP, the conquering mayors of the two main cities of the country elected in 2019, Ekrem Imamoglu in Istanbul – applauded – and Mansour Yavas in Ankara, the capital.
“Our march to power begins today in Canakkale!” shouts Yavas, lyrically. “We come out of the darkness and step into the light!” – which the dark sky still belies.
Faced with President Erdogan, in power for twenty years, the candidate of the united opposition (six parties, from the nationalist right to the left) promises justice, democracy and the return of a certain sobriety: “I will sell the sixteen presidential planes and I will buy water bombers for firefighters!”
Declined in his clips, “I promise you” is the emblematic slogan of his campaign, he who “promises” to be the president of 85 million “(Turks).
Under her soggy white hood, Selma Ozcen, 63, a retired accountant comes to get an idea: “I happened to vote for the (outgoing) government. But we want a fairer organization, a fairer power, which does not does not trample the rights, which is fair with all”, she justifies.
“We no longer want the power of a single man”, slice Rezzan Iscen, two small Turkish flags in hand.
“We must change the old system and bring democracy, justice, law. Let the economy recover. We want a life without poverty, where children do not go to bed hungry,” he insists. she this former civil servant.
“Life has become so expensive, so hard, we want a better life.”
Some in the crowd of several thousand brandish onions: these essential ingredients of popular cuisine have become the symbol of unbridled inflation (50% officially more than double according to independent economists).
“I know Turkey’s problems. We all know them and we will all solve them,” says Kemal Kilicdaroglu. “We have knowledge, experience and strength. That strength is you!”
35 days before the vote, all the polling institutes give him the advantage over Mr. Erdogan, without guaranteeing him victory in the first round, especially after the surprise reappearance of the former CHP candidate, Muharrem Ince, likely to take him 5 8% of the vote.
The Head of State, experienced in electoral campaigns but who must assume the serious economic crisis and the criticism of the slowness of relief, after the earthquake of February 6 (more than 50,000 dead), multiplies the promises of reconstruction and a “Strong Turkey”.
But at the foot of the stage, in Canakkale, Arda Cakirer, a 20-year-old student with a fine beard and earring, says he is “very moved”. He will vote for the first time in May, like six million young Turks: “These elections will determine the future of Turkey”, he assures us.
He who has only known the power of Tayyip Erdogan appreciates that Kilicdaroglu has committed to a single mandate. “It’s very important. Because after restoring order in the system, a younger president will be able to take over.”
Sema Sur, a 40-year-old who wears the headscarf, smiles: “If we didn’t love him, we wouldn’t have come. We’re soaked! But we love him for our tomorrows, for our hopes to blossom.”
The meeting ends, the rain stops, the red flags come out and with them, a sign raised above the heads assures the candidate: “You will win!”
12/04/2023 17:22:35 – Çanakkale (Turquie) (AFP) © 2023 AFP