AK Party (Adalet ve Kalknma Partisi) Justice and Development Party

History and Formation

Formed out of coalition of wide range of politicians
Islamist Virtue Party Motherland Party Democratic party

Track Record
2002 general elections
it won a two-thirds majority of seats

2004 local elections

the AK Party won 42% of the votes

2007 elections
46.6% of the vote, translating into control of 341 of the 550 available parliamentary seats. 300,000 people marched in Ankara to protest the possible candidacy of Erdoan in the 2007 presidential election

ideology
conservative democratic party "Islamic-leaning", "mildly Islamist" or "Islamist-rooted" political party

Recep Tayyip Erdoan

2007 constitutional referendum

electing the president by popular vote instead of by parliament; reducing the presidential term from seven years to five; allowing the president to stand for re-election for a second term; holding general elections every four years instead of five; reducing the quorum of lawmakers needed for parliamentary decisions from 367 to 184.

Reflections
Political parties and individual politicians are mostly seen to have their own identity putting up a demarcation line between them and the rest of players in the political arena. However history itself is witness to the way how these politicians play the game. At time they would be willing to compromise their goals for perceived higher aim. But nonetheless when the right time comes they would cease it. Revealing the true identity. The case of AK party is one of the best example to this claim. The fact that it was formed out of the coalition to form an Islamically inclined political party. The reporter would not be surprise if someday when right time comes, and Iam sure it will. AK party would put back Turkey into less secular and more Islamic country.. They are just waiting for that right time Politics is not only about the how but also the when