Erdogan's political trajectory in Turkey

In late June 2026 the German broadcaster ARD released a four‑part documentary titled “Erdoğan”, which chronicles President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s rise from a municipal mayor in Istanbul to his two‑decade rule as Turkey’s president. The series mixes archival footage with interviews, highlighting events such as the 2013 Gezi Park protests, the failed July 2016 coup, the ensuing state of emergency and the consolidation of power through presidential decrees. Critics note that the programme downplays the Kurdish issue, the 2023 earthquake’s impact on Kurdish regions, and Turkey’s military actions in Syria, focusing instead on Erdogan’s personal story and foreign relationships.

A month later, a series of articles published in July 2026 expanded the narrative, tracing Erdogan’s political career from his 1999 imprisonment after a poem reading in Siirt, through the founding of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its 2002 parliamentary victory, to subsequent elections in 2015, 2018, 2023 and the 2019 Istanbul mayoral race won by Ekrem İmamoğlu after a court‑ordered rerun. The pieces also reference the sentencing of four civil activists in Kavala. Together, the two snapshots show an ongoing media focus on Erdogan’s consolidation of power, his electoral dominance, and the broader sociopolitical repercussions within Turkey.