Eighty-five years after Turkish law guaranteed women participation in politics, women remain significantly underrepresented in elective offices. There had been hope for change earlier this year, with many pundits expressing jubilation after the elections held June 7 raised the number of female parliamentarians to a record high 98, out of a total of 550. Although the figure represented only 18% of all members, it was viewed as a step in the right direction, generating expectations for additional increases in future election cycles.

In the snap elections held Nov. 1, after the failure of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) to form a government, the number of female parliamentarians fell to 82, or 14.9%. Hatice Kapusuz, a feminist activist with the Association for the Support of Women Candidates, had predicted such a decline prior to the vote.

Kapusuz told Al-Monitor, “In the November elections, we saw a decrease in the number of female candidates on the lists. The left-wing parties kept their female candidates the same, while the ultranationalist MHP [Nationalist Action Party] indeed saw a slight increase, because it waived the fee for female candidates, but the Justice and Development Party had a significant reduction in the number of women. There were only 69 female candidates out of 550 on the AKP lists. Most of them were ranked rather low on the list, with little possibility of taking [a seat]. Indeed, most of the cities saw no female candidates on their ballots. At the conclusion of the November election, out of 81 provinces, 43 failed to send a female representative to the parliament.”

In the November elections, both the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) and the MHP had fewer women elected, because their share of the vote fell significantly. The Republican People’s Party (CHP) was able to preserve its vote and female representation from the June elections. The AKP, however, is another issue.