Turkey is following the US presidential race with great interest. Sensing the outcome of the election might significantly influence ties between Turkey and the United States, many local columnists have been discussing which new US president will be better for the US-Turkey relationship. Trump’s scandalously explicit remarks about women and sexuality must also be disturbing for any conservative Turk. Hence a recent headline in a pro-government tabloid read, “The anti-Islam Trump also turned out to be a pervert.”

Still, the pro-government media seems to be a bit more sympathetic toward Donald Trump, while anti-government media is siding with Hillary Clinton. This may sound quite surprising, for Turkey’s pro-government media is also pro-Islamic, and Trump is known for this unfriendly tone toward Muslims. But for Turks, their own political drama is more important than everything else. The July 15 attempted military coup was a breaking point in a myriad of ways. Clinton’s and Trump’s reactions to this traumatic event and Fethullah Gulen’s possible extradition shaped public opinion in Turkey. That’s when things took a clear turn, as the pro-government media, which previously criticized Trump for his “banning Muslims” stances, shifted toward him thanks to his clear support for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Things got much more complicated for Clinton, who was seen as a supporter of the Gulen movement, which the government blames for the attempted coup.

On Oct. 6, Sabah, the main pro-government paper, came out with a front-page headline “Himmet paralari Clinton’a gitti,” which translates as “Religious donations [referring to Gulenists in this context] went to Clinton.” On Sept. 28, pro-government newspapers such as Yeni Safak and Yeni Akit published news about the latest operation against the Gulen movement’s civil society association Kimse Yok Mu, which resulted in 41 people being taken into custody. According to the news, the money that was allegedly collected for humanitarian purposes during the Muslim Eid al-Adha (Feast of Sacrifice) was illegally transferred to the United States. Moreover, the news reported that $1 million was allegedly donated to Clinton’s election campaign and that firms tied to the Gulen movement have been lobbying for Clinton in the United States.

As a result, a majority of Turks in Turkey seem to support Trump, while a majority of Turks in the United States support Clinton, wrote Mahmut Ovur in Sabah. He added that the close relationship between Clinton and the Gulenists is not just of a financial nature, but like in Turkey, the Gulenists’ infiltration goes to “Clinton’s main arteries.”