Long hidden behind the shadow of Erdogan and his party, Kilicdaroglu’s star shone during the election campaign. Opinion polls put him ahead of the game.
“I ask everyone to stay calm and remember that we are carrying a spring for this country,” he told Reuters in an interview at his office in Ankara, two days before the elections considered by many to be the most important in modern Turkish history.
And he continued in a message to his supporters: “Beware of pessimism…and remember that we will eliminate authoritarian rule with the votes we cast.”
He promised to set Turkey, Europe’s second largest country, on a new path and to shed much of Erdogan’s legacy.
But Kilicdaroglu’s top priority is to return to traditional economic policies and the parliamentary system of government, and to restore the independence of the judiciary.
“We need to assign someone who has the confidence of the financial community as the head of the central bank, he said in the interview. This is the first thing foreign investors watch. central bank independence.
He added: “We are building teams of distinguished people across all departments. From politics to economics and from education to culture. We will lead the country with the most qualified executives.
The cost of living crisis
His plan aims to contain inflation, which hit 85% last year, and address the cost of living crisis that has plagued many Turks.
An alliance of six opposition parties has chosen the hardworking and sometimes feisty former civil servant as their candidate to challenge Erdogan in Sunday’s election.
Opinion polls show Kilicdaroglu, 74, leading Erdogan and could win him in a runoff, after an all-out campaign promising solutions to the high cost of living crisis that has eroded the president’s popularity in recent years.
“I know people are struggling to get by. I know the cost of living and the desperation of young people. It’s time for a change. It takes a new mind and a new understanding,” said said Kilicdaroglu at a rally.
The reverse image of Erdogan
Critics say Kilicdaroglu, who has been ridiculed by Erdogan after his repeated election defeats as leader of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), lacks his opponent’s ability to rally the masses and hegemony to lead his coalition after the elections.
Turkey-based writer and political analyst Birol Başkan said Davutoğlu “paints a completely opposite picture of Erdogan, who is a polarizing and combative figure.”
He added, “Kilichdar Oglu is more like a statesman seeking unity and reaching out to those who don’t vote for him… That’s his charm, and it’s very difficult to do that in Turkey… I’m not sure he’s going to win but he’s the right person at the right time.”
Even if he wins, Kilicdaroglu faces the challenge of holding together an opposition coalition that includes nationalists, Islamists, secularists and liberals.
His selection as candidate came after a 72-hour row in which Meral Aksener, leader of the Iyi Party, the country’s second largest party, briefly stepped down.
Peaceful foreign policy
Kılıçdaroğlu believes that the main problem in Turkish foreign policy under the rule of the Justice and Development Party was the exclusion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from the policy-making process.
He said, “We will pursue a foreign policy that promotes peace and puts Turkey’s national interests first. Our priority is our national interests and our work in accordance with the rules of the modern world.
Kilicdaroglu.. an economist
Before entering the world of politics, Kilicdaroglu worked in the Ministry of Finance and then headed the Turkish Social Insurance Institution for most of the 1990s. In his speeches, Erdogan repeatedly disparaged the performance of Kilicdaroglu while in that position.
Kemal was an economist and became a deputy of the Republican People’s Party in 2002, when Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party came to power. The centre-left Republican People’s Party (CHP) is a party created by the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who struggled to overcome his secular origins and move closer to conservatives.
Over the past few years, Kılıçdaroğlu has spoken of the desire to heal old wounds with devout Muslims and Kurds.
Kilicdaroglu rose to prominence as an anti-corruption campaigner, appearing on television waving files that led to the resignation of senior officials. A year after losing a race for mayor of Istanbul, he was elected without contest to lead the party in 2010.
Kilicdaroglu was born in the eastern province of Tunceli and is of Alevi origin.
Local media dubbed him “Turkey’s Gandhi” due to his resemblance to him due to his medical glasses and simple appearance.
He won acclaim in 2017 when he launched a 450-kilometre “march for justice” from Ankara to Istanbul following the arrest of a Republican People’s Party (CHP) lawmaker.
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