Turkish constitutional referendum, 2017

Referendum to approve 18 proposed amendments to the Constitution of Turkey
(Full details)

Location

Date

Sunday, 16 April 2017

Results
	Votes	%
Yes	25,157,025	7001514100000099999♠51.41%
No	23,777,091	7001485900000000000♠48.59%
Valid votes	48,934,116	7001982600000000000♠98.26%
Invalid or blank votes	865,047	7000174000000000000♠1.74%
Total votes	49,799,163	100.00%
Registered voters/turnout	58,366,647	7001853209999999999♠85.32%

Results by province

Yes — No

Official result is yet to be declared.

Turkish constitutional referendum Sunday, 16 April 2017
Opinion polls
Campaigns
YES EVET	NO HAYIR
Choices ordered according to colour and layout of ballot paper

A constitutional referendum was held throughout Turkey on 16 April 2017 on whether to approve 18 proposed amendments to the Turkish constitution that were brought forward by the governing Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). If approved, the office of the Prime Minister would be abolished and the existing parliamentary system of government would be replaced with an executive presidency and a presidential system. The number of seats in Parliament was proposed to be raised from 550 to 600 while the president was proposed to be given more control over appointments to the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK). The referendum was held under a state of emergency that was declared following a failed military coup attempt in July 2016. Early results indicated a 51–49% lead for the "Yes" vote. The Supreme Electoral Council allowed non-stamped ballots to be accepted as valid. The main opposition parties decried this move as illegal, claimed that as many as 1.5 million ballots were unstamped, and refused to recognize the results. The electoral board has stated that the official results might be declared in 11 to 12 days.

An executive presidency has been a long-standing proposal of the governing AKP and its founder, the current President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. In October 2016, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) announced its co-operation for producing draft proposals with the government, with the combined support of both AKP and MHP MPs being sufficient to put forward the proposals to a referendum following a parliamentary vote in January. Those in favour of a 'Yes' vote argued that the changes were necessary for a strong and stable Turkey, arguing that an executive presidency would bring about an end to unstable coalition governments that had dominated Turkish politics since the 1960s up until 2002. The 'No' campaign have argued that the proposals would concentrate too much power in the hands of the President, effectively dismantling the separation of powers and taking legislative authority away from Parliament. Critics argued that the proposed system would resemble an 'elected dictatorship' with no ability to hold the executive to account, leading effectively to a 'democratic suicide' and . Three days before the referendum, one of Erdoğan's aides called for a federal system should the 'Yes' vote prevail, causing a backlash from the pro-Yes MHP. Both sides of the campaign have been accused of using divisive and extreme rhetoric, with Erdoğan accusing all 'No' voters of being terrorists siding with the 2016 failed coup plotters.

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