Turkey’s Historic Election: What to Expect Next?

Turkey’s June 24 vote reelected President Recep Tayyip Erdogan under a new system that abolished the post of prime minister while granting wider power to the president. How will Erdogan use this mandate to manage the country’s political, economic, and foreign affairs? In this panel discussion, leading Washington-based experts reflect on the results of the election and speculate on the path ahead. The panelists were: Col. Rich Outzen is a senior U.S. Army advisor and a member of the State Department Policy Planning Staff. Previously, he served with the Office of Defense Cooperation in Ankara and taught courses on Middle East issues at the National Defense University. Lisel Hintz is an assistant professor of international relations and European studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. She has spoken and written widely on Turkey’s relations with the EU, its policies toward the Kurds, its role in Syria, and its growing “Ottoman Islamism.“