Turkey’s opposition vows more democracy if it wins election

By SUZAN FRASER
Associated Press

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — A coalition of six Turkish opposition parties striving to end two decades of rule by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are reaffirming a commitment for a return to parliamentary democracy should their alliance win elections that are likely to be held on May 14. In a ceremony in Ankara on Monday, the six parties presented their joint 240-page program for the country’s post-election future, but did not name a joint candidate to run against Erdogan. The opposition has blamed Turkey’s woes, including an economic downturn and an erosion of rights and freedoms, on the presidential system Erdogan introduced in 2018. Opposition parties say the system amounts to a “one-man rule.”