Turkish politics were remarkably reshaped in the early 2000s following the decline of the Islamist National View and the electoral breakthrough of the new Justice and Development Party (JDP) headed by Erdoğan. Beside its Islamist credentials, Erdoğan's JDP consistently and convincingly presented itself as the 'populist' defender of the downtrodden sectors of Turkish society. However, with Erdoğan's rise as the popularly elected president in 2014, Turkey's already fragile democratic system was driven in a more authoritarian direction. Shifting the focus away from structural factors, this book analyzes the political appeal and organisation of the JDP that granted them such unprecedented electoral resilience. With critical but accessible theoretical discussions, Toygar Sinan Baykan locates the JDP within the wider literature of populism, Islamist party politics, party organisations and authoritarianism. Over fifty in-depth interviews also help to relate the intimate story of Turkey's socio-cultural divides and the JDP's intraparty organisational dynamics, thereby offering a fresh account of Turkish politics.

‘This ground-breaking book, based on new research and drawing on comparative scholarship, provides a fascinating insight into the very heart of the Justice and Development Party and so into the heart of contemporary Turkish politics.’

Paul Taggart - University of Sussex

‘Baykan brings together a sophisticated theoretical focus, exhaustive research and lucid analysis to study the transformation of the Justice and Development Party from a religious-conservative democratic party into a 'personalistic mass party.' Not only students of Turkish but also those of comparative political parties and leadership will find it fascinating reading that will enhance their own analyses.’

İlter Turan - İstanbul Bilgi University

‘How and why did an Islamist (and later post-Islamist) party embraced populism? How did a populist party defy expectations that populist are destined to fail in government? In explaining the Justice and Development Party’s electoral success and political resilience by the robust organisational leverage of a party firmly controlled by the leadership and by Erdogan’s ability to reach economically and culturally underprivileged segments of society through  'low populist' appeals, Barkyan presents a compelling analysis of the political success of the JDP in Turkey and makes and important contribution to contemporary debates on competitive authoritarianism and on populism.’

Francisco Panizza - London School of Economic and Political Science

‘Baykan's Justice and Development Party in Turkey is fascinating and shrewd. It provides an incisive, comprehensive, and convincing analysis of the rise of the party and, more importantly, its leader Erdogan to the extremely powerful executive position in Turkish politics. His work is original, unfailingly eloquent, instructive, timely and inspiring. In a time when we have been observing the rise of competitive authoritarianism and democratic backsliding on a global scale, Baykan's work will exert great influence for the academic and policy-oriented studies and discussions, not only in the Turkish context but also in the fields of Political Science, Comparative Politics and Political Theory. It is a must-read.’

Fuat Keyman - Sabancı University