Good Party
İyi Parti |
|
---|---|
Abbreviation | İYİ PARTİ |
Founder | Meral Akşener |
Founded | 25 October 2017 |
Split from |
Nationalist Movement Party Republican People's Party |
Ideology |
Turkish nationalism Secularism Conservatism Pro-Europeanism |
Political position | Center |
Colours | Blue, yellow |
Slogan | Türkiye iyi olacak ("Turkey will be good") |
Parliament: |
5 / 550
|
Metropolitan municipalities: |
0 / 30
|
District municipalities: |
0 / 1,351
|
Provincial councillors: |
0 / 1,251
|
The Good Party (Turkish: İyi Parti) is a nationalist, secular and conservative political party in Turkey, established on 25 October 2017 by Meral Akşener along with dissidents from the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and other parties. It was created as an anti-Erdoğanist alternative for right-leaning voters, putting a particular emphasis on the restoration of the parliamentary system and the integrity of the judiciary and other institutions.
The Good Party was founded in the aftermath of the controversial 2017 Turkish constitutional referendum, after which the Turkish political system transitioned from a parliamentary to a presidential one with the support of the AKP and the MHP. Some prominent members of the latter opposed the constitutional amendments, however, and either resigned from the party or were expelled by the party leadership. Meral Akşener, who had mounted an unsuccessful leadership bid in the MHP in 2016, had been expelled on 8 September 2016. Throughout much of 2017, there were speculations that Akşener and her allies would set up their own party to compete with Devlet Bahçeli's MHP for Turkish nationalist voters in the 2019 general elections. It was ultimately announced that she would establish the new party on 25 October 2017, at a congress at the Nâzım Hikmet Culture Centre. On that day, the party's name, logo and slogan were announced to the public.
Due to defections from the established political parties, the Good Party had five MPs in the Turkish Grand National Assembly at the time of its formation, including former Republican People's Party deputy Aytun Çıray and prominent MHP defector Yusuf Halaçoğlu.