14.08.2026 11:00
The AK Party, whose founding was announced on August 14, 2001, with President and AK Party Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's words, 'Today will go down in Turkish political history as the birthday of the AK Party, founded by people devoted to service, and from today on, nothing in our Turkey will ever be the same again,' has left 25 years behind. The party, which came to power alone just 15 months after its founding, has been at the center of the most important turning points in Turkey's recent political history.
Under the leadership of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the AK Party, which entered Turkish political life on August 14, 2001, as Turkey's 39th party, celebrates its 25th year in politics.
THE BEGINNING OF A NEW ERA IN TURKISH POLITICAL HISTORY The AK Party was founded by the "Movement of Virtuous Ones," led by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the former Mayor of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. Erdoğan's emphasis in his founding declaration, "Today will go down in Turkish political history as the birthday of the AK Party, founded by people devoted to service, and from today on, nothing in our Turkey will ever be the same again," was considered the beginning of a new era in Turkish political history.
After the completion of the founding process, at the AK Party Founding Members Assembly Meeting held on August 16, Erdoğan was unanimously elected as the party's chairman. Thus, the AK Party's political journey, shaped by electoral victories, producing 4 prime ministers and 2 presidents, began.
IN POWER "ALONE" 15 MONTHS AFTER ITS FOUNDING Fifteen months after its founding, the AK Party, with the slogan "Alone, in power," entered the general elections of November 3, 2002, deprived of its leader Erdoğan due to his political ban, and emerged as the first party with 34.28% of the vote, leading to the formation of the 58th Republic Government under Abdullah Gül.
THE PATH TO POLITICS WAS OPENED Following the lifting of his political ban through an amendment to Article 312 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK), Chairman Erdoğan took his step into the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) by being elected as a deputy in the renewed elections in Siirt on March 9, 2003.
President Erdoğan, in a speech he made in past years, had used the words, "What did they say about me? 'He cannot even be a mukhtar' They made these headlines. What happened?" TOOK THE PRESIDENTIAL SEAT ON MARCH 15, 2003 After the resignation of the 58th Government under Abdullah Gül, Erdoğan, who was tasked with forming the government by the 10th President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, formed the 59th Government of the Republic of Turkey on March 15, 2003, and assumed the prime ministerial seat.
NEW ELECTIONS, NEW SUCCESSES Following the government formed under Erdoğan's prime ministry, the AK Party faced its first electoral test in the 2004 Local Administrations Elections. Emerging from the elections as the first party with 41.7% of the vote, the AK Party took over the administration of a total of 1750 municipalities, 12 of which were metropolitan municipalities.
Increasing its vote share to 46.58% in the 2007 general elections, the AK Party maintained its sole power, and also completed the 2009 local elections with the highest vote share.
CLOSURE CASE AGAINST THE RULING PARTY The indictment, prepared by former Chief Public Prosecutor of the Court of Cassation, Abdurrahman Yalçınkaya, which included a request for a 5-year political ban for 71 people, including President Gül and Prime Minister Erdoğan, and the closure of the AK Party, was submitted to the Constitutional Court on March 14, 2008.
With the Constitutional Court accepting the indictment on March 31, 2008, a new process began for the AK Party.
The case, which went down in political history as the "Google indictment," was concluded on July 30, 2008, after the indictment was accepted.
Six of the court members voted for the closure of the party, while 5 voted against it. However, as the qualified majority stipulated in the Constitution was not achieved, the closure case filed against the AK Party was rejected.
2010 REFERENDUM One of the AK Party's significant political tests was the 2010 referendum regarding the amendment foreseeing changes to the 1982 Constitution, which coincided with the 30th anniversary of the September 12 coup. In this referendum, 57.88% of the votes cast were "yes."
In the 2011 general elections, the AK Party achieved a vote share of 49.83%, while in the 2014 local elections, it received 45.54% support, winning a total of 818 mayoralties, 18 of which were metropolitan municipalities.
FIRST PRESIDENT ELECTED BY THE PEOPLE'S WILL Following the end of President Gül's term, in the election held on August 10, 2014, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan became the first president directly elected by the people with 51.79% of the vote, and Turkey's 12th president.
With Erdoğan's election as president, the AK Party Chairmanship was assumed by Konya Deputy Ahmet Davutoğlu.
The AK Party, which faced its first test under Davutoğlu's chairmanship in the general elections of June 7, 2015, and then in the early elections of November 1, 2015, achieved sole power on November 1.
At the AK Party's 2nd Extraordinary Congress held on May 22, 2016, Binali Yıldırım, one of the party's founders, was elected Chairman. Yıldırım formed the 65th Government and became Prime Minister.
FETÖ'S COUP ATTEMPT AND THE BIRTH OF THE PEOPLE'S ALLIANCE The bloodiest coup attempt in Turkish history by the Fethullahist Terror Organization (FETÖ) on July 15, 2016, was prevented when citizens, responding to President Erdoğan's call, "I invite our nation to the squares of our provinces and airports," stood in front of the tanks and embraced democracy.
The joint solidarity displayed by the AK Party and the MHP against the coup attempt after July 15 formed the foundation of the People's Alliance.
ANOTHER IMPORTANT STEP FOR TURKEY The AK Party took an important step for Turkey with the referendum held on April 16, 2017. The foundations of the referendum on April 16, 2017, which opened the doors to a new era for Turkey, were laid when the constitutional amendment proposal, signed by 316 AK Party deputies including Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım, was submitted to the TBMM Speaker's Office on December 10, 2016.
After the votes on the articles, on February 10, 2017, President Erdoğan approved the law on the constitutional amendment and sent it to the Prime Ministry for publication to be put to a public vote.
TRANSITION TO THE PRESIDENTIAL GOVERNMENT SYSTEM The referendum resulted in 51.41% "yes" and 48.59% "no" votes. Thus, the provision in the Constitution stating, "The one elected as President shall sever ties with their party" was removed, and the path for President Erdoğan to hold party membership was opened. Citizens decided, with their votes, to transition to the Presidential Government System.
President Erdoğan, after an absence of 979 days since the 2014 Presidential Election, returned to the AK Party, signed his membership declaration, and became a member.
Following the extraordinary congress decision, President Erdoğan was re-elected as the AK Party Chairman after 998 days at the 3rd Extraordinary Grand Congress held on May 21, 2017, receiving all 1414 valid votes.
JUNE 24, 2018 ELECTIONS With the Law on Basic Provisions of Elections and Voter Registries and the Law Amending Certain Laws, numbered 7102, which allowed political parties to form election alliances, for the first time in Turkey, political parties were enabled to enter elections by forming alliances.
The alliance between the AK Party and the MHP, named the "People's Alliance," passed its first test in the election on June 24, 2018.
Following the early election proposal from Devlet Bahçeli, the Chairman of the MHP, with whom the political alliance was made, Erdoğan and the party's authorized bodies evaluated this proposal, and it was announced that the elections would be held on June 24, 2018.
For the first time on June 24, voters went to the polls on the same day for both the presidential and parliamentary elections.
Erdoğan, who received 52.59 percent of the votes in the elections, became the first President of the Presidential Government System, while the AK Party also managed to complete its 13th election as the first party with 42.56 percent of the votes in the parliamentary election.
Erdoğan, who took his oath of office in the Turkish Grand National Assembly on July 9, announced the first Presidential Cabinet of the new system on the same day.
BYLAW AMENDMENT AT THE 6TH ORDINARY CONGRESS Erdoğan, who received all of the valid votes at the AK Party's 6th Ordinary Grand Congress held on August 18, 2018, was re-elected as chairman with 1380 votes. With the amendment made at the congress, the "political party election alliance" made in the June 24 elections was added to the party bylaws, and the clause "Membership of the Central Executive Committee and the position of Vice President or Minister cannot be combined in the same person" was added to the bylaws.
In the Local Administrations General Elections, the AK Party and the MHP continued the "People's Alliance." Accordingly, an alliance was formed in 51 provinces, 30 of which were metropolitan cities, while the AK Party nominated candidates in 27 metropolitan municipalities, and the MHP nominated candidates in the Adana, Mersin, and Manisa metropolitan municipalities.
The AK Party also succeeded in being the first party in this election with a vote rate of 44.33 percent.
COVID-19 OBSTACLE TO THE ORDINARY CONGRESS PROCESS Upon the instruction of President and AK Party Chairman Erdoğan, the party's 7th Ordinary Grand Congress process began in the autumn, but due to the Kovid-19 outbreak, which also started to be effective in Turkey in March, the congress process launched with the theme "Walk on the path you believe in" was paused.
After the pandemic conditions eased, the congress process continued, and the congress was held on March 24, 2021. Erdoğan, receiving all of the 1428 valid votes, was once again re-elected as the AK Party Chairman.
MAY 14 PRESIDENTIAL AND 28TH TERM PARLIAMENTARY GENERAL ELECTION President Erdoğan, who made a statement at the Presidential Complex on March 10, 2023, signed the decision to renew the presidential and parliamentary elections, which were due to be held on June 18, on May 14, using the authority granted by Article 116 of the Constitution.
On May 14, when the Presidential Election and the 28th Term Parliamentary Election were held, the People's Alliance candidate Recep Tayyip Erdoğan received 49.52 percent of the votes, but since he could not get 50 percent plus 1 vote in the first round, he could not be elected President. The AK Party, on the other hand, with 35.62 percent of the votes it received, brought out 268 deputies in the parliament.
In the second round of the Presidential Election held on May 28, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was elected President by receiving 52.18 percent of the votes.
The AK Party, which has managed to be the first party in all general elections it has entered since its establishment, continued its title of being the party that has remained in power for the longest period since 1946, when multi-party political life began, by winning this general election as well.
Following the elections, the AK Party held its 4th Extraordinary Grand Congress on October 7, 2023.
President and AK Party Chairman Erdoğan, receiving all of the 1399 valid votes, was re-elected as the AK Party Chairman.
At the congress, 49 new names took place in the newly elected Central Decision and Administrative Board. In the AK Party Central Executive Committee, 14 of the 18 names retained their positions.
MARCH 31, 2024 LOCAL ADMINISTRATIONS ELECTION The AK Party received 35.49 percent of the votes in the March 31 Local Administrations Election, winning 24 provincial and 357 district municipalities.
In his speech following the election results, President Erdoğan stated, "We will definitely take the necessary steps by weighing the messages given by the nation at the ballot box on the scales of our minds and consciences in the most accurate and objective way."
Following the election, in the AK Party organizations, the provincial chairmen of Adıyaman, Afyonkarahisar, Erzincan, Gaziantep, Kastamonu, Osmaniye, Zonguldak, Rize, Şanlıurfa, Mardin, Kahramanmaraş, and Batman, along with some district chairmen, were changed, initiating a renewal process in the cadres.
CHANGE IN AK PARTY CADRES The AK Party held its 8th Ordinary Grand Congress on February 23, 2025, and determined the members of the Central Decision and Administrative Board (CDAB), the Central Disciplinary Board, the Political Virtue and Ethics Board, and the Headquarters Intra-Party Democracy Arbitration Board.
In the new CDAB, 36 names retained their positions, while 39 names were not included in the new party administration. With 39 new names joining the board, 52 percent of the CDAB was renewed.
At the congress, an amendment was also made to Article 81 of the party bylaws prepared by the Bylaw Amendment Commission. Thus, 3 new chairmanships were established named Relations with Turkish States, Health Policies, and Culture and Art Policies.
On the other hand, AK Party Environment and Urbanization Policies Chairman Sevilay Tuncer transferred her duty to AK Party CDAB member and Istanbul Deputy Nilhan Ayan on April 9, 2026.
Following the 8th Ordinary Grand Congress, a renewal process began in AK Party organizations. Provincial chairmen were changed in 15 provinces: Adana, Adıyaman, Afyonkarahisar, Ardahan, Bitlis, Çanakkale, Diyarbakır, Elazığ, Giresun, Karaman, Muğla, Niğde, Ordu, Siirt, and Tunceli.
TERROR-FREE TURKEY PROCESS Significant progress has been made in the "Terror-Free Turkey" goal, which started with the call of MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli on October 22, 2024, and was carried forward with the ownership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
In this context, the National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission was established by the Speaker of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, Numan Kurtulmuş, with a letter sent to the political parties represented in the parliament, in order to work on completely removing terrorism from Turkey's agenda, strengthening social integration, reinforcing national unity and brotherhood, and in the fields of freedom, democracy, and the rule of law.
The Commission began its work on August 5, 2025.
The Report of the Commission on National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy was put to a vote at the Commission's 21st meeting on February 18, 2026, and was accepted by a qualified majority.
The Draft Law on Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Integration, prepared within the scope of the "Terror-Free Turkey" process, was submitted to the Presidency of the Turkish Grand National Assembly on August 5, 2026.
With the draft, it is aimed to determine the procedures for the postponement of the execution of ongoing investigations and prosecutions and imposed prison sentences, and other procedures to be carried out, following the determination by security institutions that the PKK/KCK terrorist organization and all related formations have ended their actual existence and have surrendered all weapons and ammunition under their control, and the publication in the Official Gazette of the National Security Council Decision confirming this determination.
The Draft Law, accepted in the TBMM Justice Commission on August 8, was accepted and became law at the TBMM General Assembly on August 10, with 467 "acceptance", 87 "rejection", 7 "abstention", and 2 "duplicate" votes.
ERDOGAN WILL MAKE A HISTORIC SPEECH TODAY On the other hand; President Erdogan will attend the "AK Party 25th Anniversary Program" at the Capital National Garden today. AK Party Spokesperson Omer Celik, stating that Erdogan's speech here will not only be about the AK Party's 25th anniversary, said that the speech will be one of the important speeches in the history of the Republic.