Foreign Relations of the United States, 1950, The Near East, South Asia, and Africa, Volume V

782.00/5–2250

Memorandum by the Acting Secretary of State to the President

confidential

[Washington,] May 22, 1950.

Subject: The Turkish Elections

In free and orderly elections held in Turkey on May 14, 1950,¹ the Democrat Party, the leading opposition party, scored a sweeping and generally unexpected victory over the Republican Peoples’ Party, the party of Atatürk² and Inönü,³ which has been in power since the Republic was founded in 1923. These elections represent the culmination of democratic development in Turkey, a country which in a remarkably short period of time, has evolved from absolute monarchy to the multi-party system, under the guidance of a benevolent dictatorship. Great credit is due President Inönü who has fostered this development even though it has meant the defeat of his party.

The Democrat Party victory is believed to reflect countrywide dissatisfaction with, economic conditions, and reaction against the single party mentality characterizing many of the leaders of the People’s Party. That it does not reflect a desire for radical changes in policy is borne out by the very poor showing of the Nation’s Party, an opposition party appealing to extremist elements, which has won only one seat in the Assembly.

The new National Assembly will convene on May 22 to elect the President of the Republic.⁴ He, in turn, will appoint a prime minister who will form a new government.⁵ This government, it is expected, will cooperate with the United States and the other western democracies as fully as its predecessor as the two parties are united on foreign policy. There are no fundamental differences in the tenets of the two parties with respect to domestic policies. The Democrat Party, however, while admitting the necessity for state enterprise in Turkey, appears to attach more importance to the role of private enterprise and foreign capital in the development of the country than the Peoples’ Party and also advocates the right of labor to strike which is now forbidden. The new government is expected to carry out its policies with moderation and caution.

James E. Webb

1. The Turkish Ninth Grand National Assembly (GNA), which was elected on May 14, 1950, consisted of 395 members of the Democrat Party, 69 members of the Republican People’s Party, 1 member of the Nation’s Party, 9 Independents, and 13 vacancies (despatch 6, July 5, from Ankara, 782.00/7–550, not printed).
2. Kemal Atatürk, President of the Turkish Republic, 1923–1938.
3. Ismet Inönü, outgoing President of the Turkish Republic, was elected on May 14 Delegate for Malatya to the Ninth GNA in which, as President General of the Republican People’s Party, he led the opposition.
4. Celai Bayar, leader of the Democrat Party, was elected President of the Turkish Republic by a vote of 387 (for Bayar) to 64 (for Inönü) and 1 for Halil Özyöruk by the Ninth GNA on May 22.
5. Government formed on May 22 with Adnan Menderes as Prime Minister, Fuat Köprülü as Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Refik Sevket Ince as Minister of National Defense.