Turkish elections: why the EU may come to regret its support for Erdoğan

Turkey held national elections on 1 November, with the Justice and Development Party (AKP) founded by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan managing to regain the absolute majority in parliament that it had lost in elections in June. Ranj Alaaldin writes that while Erdoğan has successfully reasserted his control over Turkish politics, the tactics he adopted following the June elections are likely to have lasting consequences for relations between the Turkish state and its Kurdish population. He also argues that the EU’s attempts to secure a deal with Turkey on the refugee crisis effectively bolstered Erdoğan in the run up to the elections, with any opportunity to exert pressure on Turkey at a time of weakness likely to be lost now that the AKP has regained its majority.