Turkey Government - 2024

Country name

conventional long form: Republic of Turkey

conventional short form: Turkey

local long form: Turkey Cumhuriyeti

local short form: Turkey

etymology: the name means "Land of the Turks"

note: Turkiye is an approved English short-form name for Turkey

Government type

presidential republic

Capital

name: Ankara

geographic coordinates: 39 56 N, 32 52 E

time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology: Ankara has been linked with a second millennium B.C. Hittite cult center of Ankuwash, although this connection is uncertain; in classical and medieval times, the city was known as Ankyra (meaning "anchor" in Greek and reflecting the city's position as a junction for multiple trade and military routes); by about the 13th century the city began to be referred to as Angora; following the establishment of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, the city's name became Ankara

Administrative divisions

81 provinces (iller, singular - ili); Adana, Adiyaman, Afyonkarahisar, Agri, Aksaray, Amasya, Ankara, Antalya, Ardahan, Artvin, Aydin, Balikesir, Bartin, Batman, Bayburt, Bilecik, Bingol, Bitlis, Bolu, Burdur, Bursa, Canakkale, Cankiri, Corum, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Duzce, Edirne, Elazig, Erzincan, Erzurum, Eskisehir, Gaziantep, Giresun, Gumushane, Hakkari, Hatay, Igdir, Isparta, Istanbul, Izmir (Smyrna), Kahramanmaras, Karabuk, Karaman, Kars, Kastamonu, Kayseri, Kilis, Kirikkale, Kirklareli, Kirsehir, Kocaeli, Konya, Kutahya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mersin, Mugla, Mus, Nevsehir, Nigde, Ordu, Osmaniye, Rize, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanliurfa, Siirt, Sinop, Sirnak, Sivas, Tekirdag, Tokat, Trabzon (Trebizond), Tunceli, Usak, Van, Yalova, Yozgat, Zonguldak

Independence

29 October 1923 (republic proclaimed, succeeding the Ottoman Empire)

National holiday

Republic Day, 29 October (1923)

Constitution

history: several previous; latest ratified 9 November 1982

amendments: proposed by written consent of at least one third of Grand National Assembly (GNA) of Turkey (TBMM) members; adoption of draft amendments requires two debates in plenary TBMM session and three-fifths majority vote of all GNA members; the president of the republic can request TBMM reconsideration of the amendment and, if readopted by two-thirds majority TBMM vote, the president may submit the amendment to a referendum; passage by referendum requires absolute majority vote; amended several times, last in 2017

Legal system

civil law system based on various European legal systems, notably the Swiss civil code

International law organization participation

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Citizenship

citizenship by birth: no

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Turkey

dual citizenship recognized: yes, but requires prior permission from the government

residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state: President Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN (chief of state since 28 August 2014; head of government since 9 July 2018); Vice President Cevdet YILMAZ (since 3 June 2023); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government

head of government: President Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN (head of government since 9 July 2018; chief of state since 28 August 2014)

cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president

elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 14 May 2023 with a runoff on 28 May 2023 (next to be held in 2028)

election results:
2023: Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN reelected president in second round - Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN (AKP) 52.2%, Kemal KILICDAROGLU (CHP) 47.8%

2018: Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN reelected president in first round - Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN (AKP) 52.6%, Muharrem INCE (CHP) 30.6%, Selahattin DEMIRTAS (HDP) 8.4%, Meral AKSENER (IYI) 7.3%, other 1.1%

Legislative branch

description: unicameral Grand National Assembly of Turkey or Turkey Buyuk Millet Meclisi (600 seats); members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by closed party-list proportional representation vote, with a 10% threshold required to win a seat; members serve 5-year terms)

elections: last held on 14 May 2023 (next to be held in 2028)

election results: percent of vote by party/coalition - People's Alliance 49.9% (AKP 35.6%, MHP 10.1%, YRP 2.8%, BBP 1%), Nation Alliance 35.4% (CHP 25.3%, IYI 9.7%), Labor and Freedom Alliance 10.7% (YSGP 8.9%, TIP 1.8%); seats by party/coalition - People's Alliance 323 (AKP 268, MHP 50, YRP 5), Nation Alliance 212 (CHP 169, IYI 43), Labor and Freedom Alliance 65 (YSGP 61, TIP 4); composition - men 479, women 121, percent of women 20.2%

Judicial branch

highest court(s): Constitutional Court or Anayasa Mahkemesi (consists of the president, 2 vice presidents, and 12 judges); Court of Cassation (consists of about 390 judges and is organized into civil and penal chambers); Council of State (organized into 15 divisions - 14 judicial and 1 consultative - each with a division head and at least 5 members)

judge selection and term of office: Constitutional Court members - 3 appointed by the Grand National Assembly and 12 by the president of the republic; court president and 2 deputy court presidents appointed from among its members for 4-year terms; judges serve 12-year, nonrenewable terms with mandatory retirement at age 65; Court of Cassation judges appointed by the Board of Judges and Prosecutors, a 13-member body of judicial officials; Court of Cassation judges serve until retirement at age 65; Council of State members appointed by the Board and by the president of the republic; members serve renewable, 4-year terms

subordinate courts: regional appeals courts; basic (first instance) courts; peace courts; aggravated crime courts; specialized courts, including administrative and audit; note - a constitutional amendment in 2017 abolished military courts unless established to investigate military personnel actions during war conditions

Political parties and leaders

Democracy and Progress Party or DEVA [Ali BABACAN]
Democrat Party or DP [Gultekin UYSAL]
Democratic Regions Party or DBP [Saliha AYDENIZ, Keskin BAYINDIR]
Felicity Party (Saadet Party) or SP [Temel KARAMOLLAOGLU]
Free Cause Party or HUDA PAR [Zekeriya YAPICIOGLU]
Future Party (Gelecek Partisi) or GP [Ahmet DAVUTOGLU]
Good Party or IYI [Meral AKSENER]
Grand Unity Party or BBP [Mustafa DESTICI]
Justice and Development Party or AKP [Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN]
Labor and Freedom Alliance (electoral alliance includes YSGP, HDP, TIP)
Nation Alliance [collective leadership] (electoral alliance includes CHP, DEVA, DP, GP, IYI, SP) (dissolved 1 June 2023)
Nationalist Movement Party or MHP [Devlet BAHCELI]
New Welfare Party or YRP [Fatih ERBAKAN]
Party of Greens and the Left Future or YSGP [Cigfrm  Kilicgun UCAR and Ibrahim AKIN]
People's Alliance (electoral alliance includes AKP, BBP, MHP, YRP)
Peoples' Democratic Party or HDP [Pervin BULDAN, Mithat SANCAR]
Republican People's Party or CHP [Kemal KILICDAROGLU]
Workers' Party of Turkey or TIP [Erkan BAS]

note:  as of September 2021, 116 political parties were legally registered

International organization participation

ADB (nonregional member), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CBSS (observer), CD, CE, CERN (observer), CICA, CPLP (associate observer), D-8, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, EU (candidate country), FAO, FATF, G-20, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club (associate), PCA, PIF (partner), SCO (dialogue member), SELEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, Wassenaar Arrangement, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

note: Turkey is an EU candidate country whose satisfactory completion of accession criteria is required before being granted full EU membership

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Chargé d'Affaires Halime Digdem BUNER (since 13 January 2024)

chancery: 2525 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone: [1] (202) 612-6700

FAX: [1] (202) 612-6744

email address and website:
embassy.washingtondc@mfa.gov.tr

T.C. Dışişleri Bakanlığı - Turkish Embassy In Washington, D.C. (mfa.gov.tr)

consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Jeffry Lane FLAKE (since 26 January 2022)

embassy: 1480 Sokak No. 1, Cukurambar Mahallesi, 06530 Cankaya, Ankara

mailing address: 7000 Ankara Place, Washington  DC 20512-7000

telephone: [90] (312) 294-0000

FAX: [90] (312) 467-0019

email address and website:
Ankara-ACS@state.gov

https://tr.usembassy.gov/

consulate(s) general: Istanbul

consulate(s): Adana

Flag description

red with a vertical white crescent moon (the closed portion is toward the hoist side) and white five-pointed star centered just outside the crescent opening; the flag colors and designs closely resemble those on the banner of the Ottoman Empire, which preceded modern-day Turkey; the crescent moon and star serve as insignia for Turkic peoples; according to one interpretation, the flag represents the reflection of the moon and a star in a pool of blood of Turkish warriors

National symbol(s)

vertical crescent moon with adjacent five-pointed star; national colors: red, white

National anthem

name: "Istiklal Marsi" (Independence March)

lyrics/music: Mehmet Akif ERSOY/Zeki UNGOR

note: lyrics adopted 1921, music adopted 1932; the anthem's original music was adopted in 1924; a new composition was agreed upon in 1932

National heritage

total World Heritage Sites: 19 (17 cultural, 2 mixed)

selected World Heritage Site locales: Archaeological Site of Troy (c); (c); Diyarbakır Fortress and Hevsel Gardens Cultural Landscape (c); Hierapolis-Pamukkale (m); (m); Göbekli Tepe (c); (c); Selimiye Mosque and its Social Complex (c); Neolithic Site of Çatalhöyük (c); Bursa and Cumalıkızık: the Birth of the Ottoman Empire (c); Gordion (c)