ISTANBUL–Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan this week took another big step towards the strong executive presidency he has been pressing for since 2008. The sacking of Ahmet Davutoğlu, prime minister and leader of the AKP (Justice and Development Party) since August 2014, looks set to be a turning point in the country’s political and constitutional life, even though as yet nothing has actually changed on paper.

Three names are being circulated as possible replacements – one of them being the son in law of the president. None looks likely to have a political power-base distinct from that of President Erdoğan: one being a close friend and another his son-in-law, now energy minister. As happened in 2014, President Erdoğan will probably handpick his choice, a single candidate who will then be voted in by the AKP membership at a special party conference on May 22.

Though the AKP spokesmen say the party is not considering holding fresh general elections, some observers in Ankara predict that it may yet do so in an attempt to get the voter backing needed to give President Erdoğan his presidential constitution. With all three opposition parties in very serious disarray, the AKP may now be able to get the 400 seats in parliament which it failed to do in June 2015. That would enable it to push through a new constitution without holding a potentially much more risky referendum.

http://atimes.com/2016/05/erdogans-sack-of-davutoglu-underscores-strong-turkish-presidency/

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has abruptly announced that he will step down, leaving the door open for Turkey’s controversial President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to continue consolidating power. The resignation could spell further trouble between Turkey, which is crucial to managing the Syrian refugee crisis and the fight against ISIS, and its relations with the United States and Europe.

The decision came after an hour and a half meeting between Davutoglu and Erdogan, who have had increasingly public spats for weeks. Chief among their differences is the fate of Turkey’s constitution.

Erdogan wants to change Turkey’s constitution and move towards an executive presidency, effectively pushing aside the Prime Minister who is, under Turkey’s current constitution, the head of government. Davutoglu, a bookish former professor hand-picked by Erdogan when he himself was forced out of the role of prime minister due to term limits, offered only lukewarm support for the plan.

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Davutoglu had opposed Erdogan, to some extent, over the media crackdown, arguing against the pre-trial detention of journalists. Now, with Davutoglu gone and likely to be replaced with a more biddable surrogate (Erdogan’s son-in-law has been floated as one of the possibilities), it’s likely that Turkey will take an even harder line.

http://thinkprogress.org/world/2016/05/05/3775535/davutoglu-resigns-explained/