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Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party Halkların Eşitlik ve Demokrasi Partisi | |
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| Abbreviation | DEM Party (official in English)[1] |
| Co-Leaders | Tülay Hatimoğulları Tuncer Bakırhan |
| Founded | 15 October 2023 |
| Preceded by | Green Left Party (de jure) Peoples' Democratic Party (de facto) |
| Headquarters | Atatürk Bulvarı No:88 Daire: 16Çankaya –Ankara |
| Membership(2025) |  14,741[2] |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Centre-left toleft-wing |
| National affiliation | Peoples' Democratic Congress Labour and Freedom Alliance Kurdish Freedom and Democracy Alliance[5] |
| European affiliation | Party of European Socialists (associate member)[6] |
| Colours | Green, Purple and Orange |
| Grand National Assembly | 56 / 600 |
| Metropolitan municipalities | 1 / 30 |
| Provinces | 3 / 51 |
| District municipalities | 49 / 922 |
| Belde Municipalities | 9 / 390 |
| Provincial councilors | 132 / 1,282 |
| Municipal Assemblies | 1,410 / 20,953 |
| Website | |
| demparti.org.tr | |
ThePeoples' Equality and Democracy Party (Kurmanji Kurdish:Partiya Wekhevî û Demokrasiya Gelan;Turkish:Halkların Eşitlik ve Demokrasi Partisi, abbreviated asDEM Party)[7] is a pro-Kurdish political party inTurkey. It is the legal successor of theGreen Left Party[8] and with thePeoples' Democratic Party (HDP) handing over its work to this party in 2023, it became the latest iteration of theKurdish minority interests party in Turkey.[clarification needed]
Similar to its predecessors, its adversaries accuse the party of being the political branch of theKurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey.[9]
ThePeoples' Democratic Party (HDP) has faced aclosure case since 2021.Selahattin Demirtaş stated that if the party is closed, HDP parliamentary candidates would enter theGreen Left Party (YSP) lists in the2023 general election. Furthermore, the party leadership of HDP announced that it would hand over active political work to the YSP.[10] Already in October 2022, YSP changed their logo to design closer to HDP.[11]
Upon the decision taken on 24 March 2023, Peoples' Democratic Party,Labour Party,Labourist Movement Party andSocial Freedom Party decided to enter the 2023 general election from the Green Left Party lists.[12] The party received 8.82% of the votes and currently has 57 MPs in the parliament, while HDP had won 11.7% of the votes in the2018 elections. The YSP did not nominate any presidential candidate for the 2023 election but instead supportedRepublican People's Party (CHP) leaderKemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who was the joint presidential candidate of an opposition bloc named theNation Alliance and was defeated by the incumbent president,Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the run-off round.
The Green Left Party's 4th Extraordinary Congress was held on 15 October 2023 in Ankara Atatürk Sports Hall with the slogan "Again for Freedom", where the YSP changed its name and elected new co-chairs. The new name of the party was determined as Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (HEDEP).Adana MPTülay Hatimoğulları Oruç andSiirt MP Tuncer Bakırhan were elected as co-chairs.[13] A month earlier it was reported that YSP planned to rename itself to "Democratic People's Party" (Turkish:Demokratik Halklar Partisi).[14] The abbreviation "HEDEP" was rejected for the resemblance toHADEP.[15]
The party charter states that the DEM Party "assumes political responsibility for a new life and future, for the establishment of a democratic, libertarian, egalitarian, just, ecological, gender-equal and solidaristic society, with a pluralist, participatory and deliberative understanding of struggle; defending universal human rights without any discrimination, protecting the rights of nature and all living things, fighting against militarism" and that it is an ecologist, peaceful democratic political party in favor of labor and social justice. It proclaims that "our Party, where the forces that struggle together for these goals come together to eliminate all forms of oppression, exploitation and discrimination and to build a life worthy of human dignity, aims for a democratic people's rule."[16]
Following the 2023 elections, the party held a two-day conference inAnkara under the slogan "With Change to Freedom". At the conference, Çiğdem Kılıçgün Uçar, co-spokesperson of the Green Left Party, defined theKurdish question as the most important problem in Turkey, and a matter of denial and annihilation. Uçar has also stated thatAbdullah Öcalan is "the most important actor for Turkey's democratization", claiming his "absolute isolation" inİmralı that has lasted for 24 years to be the biggest obstacle to democratization.[17][18]
Instead of the Frenchlaique model of secularism with the complete exclusion of religion from politics and social life, the party promotes "liberal secularism" through activities such as the "Democratic Islam Desk", which is part of the party'sPeoples and Beliefs Commission.[19][20]
On 26 March 2023, the party issued a resolute declaration following its party assembly meeting, emphasizing its commitment to challenging the current one-man regime in Turkey and advocating for a democratic republic. The declaration advocates for the revolutionaries,Alevis,Kurds,women, and youth to push for change and express their demands for their rights, education and housing.[21]
| Election date | Leader | Votes | % of Votes | Seats | +/- | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Çiğdem Kılıçgün Uçar İbrahim Akın | 4,803,774 | 8.82% | 57 / 600 | 57 | Opposition |
| Election date | Leader | Councillors | Municipalities | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Popular Vote | % | ± | Popular Vote | % | # | ± | ||
| 2024 | Tülay Hatimoğulları Tuncer Bakırhan | 2.646.124 | 5,80 (#5) |  0,04(asHDP) | 2.625.588 | 5,70 (#4) | 85 / 1,389 | 60 |
Media related toGreen Left Party at Wikimedia Commons
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