The Justice and Development Party in Turkey

‘This ground-breaking book, based on new research and drawing on comparative scholarship, provides a fascinating insight into the very heart of the Justice and Development Party and so into the heart of contemporary Turkish politics.’ Paul Taggart, University of Sussex‘Baykan brings together a sophisticated theoretical focus, exhaustive research and lucid analysis to study the transformation of the Justice and Development Party from a religious-conservative democratic party into a ‘personalistic mass party.’ Not only students of Turkish but also those of comparative political parties and leadership will find it fascinating reading that will enhance their own analyses.’ İlter Turan, İstanbul Bilgi University‘How and why did an Islamist (and later post-Islamist) party embraced populism? How did a populist party defy expectations that populist are destined to fail in government? In explaining the Justice and Development Party’s electoral success and political resilience by the robust organisational leverage of a party firmly controlled by the leadership and by Erdogan’s ability to reach economically and culturally underprivileged segments of society through ‘low populist’ appeals, Barkyan presents a compelling analysis of the political success of the JDP in Turkey and makes and important contribution to contemporary debates on competitive authoritarianism and on populism.’ Francisco Panizza, London School of Economic and Political Science‘Baykan’s Justice and Development Party in Turkey is fascinating and shrewd. It provides an incisive, comprehensive, and convincing analysis of the rise of the party and, more importantly, its leader Erdogan to the extremely powerful executive position in Turkish politics. His work is original, unfailingly eloquent, instructive, timely and inspiring. In a time when we have been observing the rise of competitive authoritarianism and democratic backsliding on a global scale, Baykan’s work will exert great influence for the academic and policy-oriented studies and discussions, not only in the Turkish context but also in the fields of Political Science, Comparative Politics and Political Theory. It is a must-read.’ Fuat Keyman, Sabancı University‘… invaluable contribution …[a] comprehensive, well-researched and carefully organized study …’ Yunus Sözen, Democratization

Toygar Sinan Baykan is Assistant Professor of Political Science and Public Administration at Kirklareli University, Turkey. He attended the Middle East Technical University and Universiteit Leiden for his post-graduate studies and has a master’s degree in comparative politics from the London School of Economics and Political Science. He received his Ph.D. degree in politics from the University of Sussex, with his dissertation focusing on the populism and organisation of the JDP in Turkey. His reviews have appeared in Party Politics, Mediterranean Politics and Political Studies Review. His research interests include party politics, comparative politics and populism.