Home > 1.5.1 Indirect suffrage > TÜRKIYE - Opinion on the Amendments to the Constituion Adopted by the Grand National Assembly on 21 January 2017 and to be Submitted to a National Referendum on 16 April 2017
 
 
 
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Paragraph 54
 

According to the Turkish authorities, “it is the natural consequence of the system that the President, who represents the executive organ, has a link with the political party. Since it is an obligatory consequence of the new system that the President who is beyond a symbolic figure, who has political responsibility and needs popular votes in the elections to be elected will act together with a political party. For example, in the United States and in France, links between the presidents representing the executive organ and their political parties remain. This situation should not be a problem in terms of democracy. As a matter of fact, the link with the party does not necessarily have to remain and, moreover, it's not a necessity to continue that link as a leader of the political party. As a requirement of democracy, this should be left to the political parties' own preference”.