1997 Nationalist Movement Party Extraordinary Congress Explained

Election Name:Nationalist Movement Party Extraordinary Congress, 1997
Country:Turkey
Type:convention
Ongoing:no
Election Date:18 May and 6 July 1997
1Blank:Constituency
2Blank:Delegate vote
3Blank:Percentage
Image1:Devlet Bahçeli VOA 2015 (cropped).jpg
Image1 Size:150x150px
Candidate1:Devlet Bahçeli
1Data1:Osmaniye
Colour1:870000
Party1:Nationalist Movement Party
2Data1:359 (4th congress)
697 (5th congress)
3Data1:29.9% (4th congress)
59.1 (5th congress)
Image2 Size:150x150px
Candidate2:Yıldırım Tuğrul Türkeş
1Data2:Istanbul
Colour2:870000
Party2:Nationalist Movement Party
2Data2:412 (4th congress)
483 (5th congress)
3Data2:34.4 (4th congress)
40.9% (5th congress)
Leader
Before Election:Alparslan Türkeş
Before Party:Nationalist Movement Party
After Election:Devlet Bahçeli
After Party:Nationalist Movement Party

The 1997 Nationalist Movement Party Extraordinary Congress referred to two party conventions held by the Nationalist Movement Party (Turkish: Milliyetçi Hareket Partisi - MHP), a far-right ultranationalist political party in Turkey, following the death of their first leader Alparslan Türkeş. The first congress was held on 18 May 1997, where six candidates ran for the party leadership. Türkeş's eldest son, Tuğrul Türkeş emerged with a plurality of the vote while Devlet Bahçeli came second. The remaining candidates subsequently withdrew in support for Bahçeli, resulting in violence breaking out between party members supporting rival candidates. The second round was subsequently delayed until 6 July.

In their campaign speeches, Türkeş attacked Bahçeli for allegedly disrespecting the legacy of his father, whereas Bahçeli claimed that Türkeş's supporters did not have a place in the party.[1] Devlet Bahçeli was elected in the second round with 697 delegates' votes as opposed to Türkeş's 483, prompting Türkeş to resign from the party and establish the Bright Turkey Party (ATP) in 1998. The ATP was dissolved in 2010 after Türkeş rejoined the MHP in 2007 and became a Member of Parliament for Istanbul in the 2007 general election.

Results

4th extraordinary congress, 18 May 1997

CandidateVotesPercentage
Yıldırım Tuğrul Türkeş41234.4
Devlet Bahçeli35929.9
Ramiz Ongun23119.3
Enis Öksüz1048.7
Muharrem Şemsek806.7
İbrahim Çiftçi131.1
1,199100.0

5th extraordinary congress, 6 July 1997

CandidateVotesPercentage
Devlet Bahçeli69759.1
Yıldırım Tuğrul Türkeş48340.9
1,180100.0

Notes and References

  1. Web site: MHP kurultay tarihi/Siyaset/Milliyet blog.