Right-wing politics has increased its potency around the world, especially in Turkey, which has experienced a two-decade reign of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP). One of the most important instruments the AKP has used to gain and maintain power is the discourse of resentment. This emotional language features an appeal to a populist sense of the nation’s rising above dangers posed by the elite and the bureaucracy. This article examines Turkey’s right-wing politics, showing how and why leaders have created and deployed the resentment discourse. Analyzing the historical-social context of this instrument of power will help us understand the rise of the right. Even though Erdoğan’s party suffered a setback in the spring 2024 municipal elections, the politics of resentment is still effective and allows the party to extend its success in national contests.
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