BOARD REJECTS CHALLENGE TO NOVEMBER ELECTION

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 006263

SIPDIS


DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE


E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/06/2008
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM TU
SUBJECT: BOARD REJECTS CHALLENGE TO NOVEMBER ELECTION
RESULTS


REF: A. ANKARA 6122

B. ANKARA 5848


Classified by Acting Polcouns C.O. Blaha; reasons 1.5 b and d.



1. (U) As expected (reftels) Turkey's High Election Board
(YSK) voted 6-1 October 4 to reject appeals calling for a
reallocation of seats in Parliament or an annulment of the
November 2002 national election results. Several parties and
individuals filed the appeals following a September 29
Supreme Appeals Court ruling upholding a conviction against
leaders of the Democratic People's Party (DEHAP) for
election-related fraud (reftels). The most significant of
the appeals was filed by the True Path Party (DYP),which
stood a chance of entering Parliament with 66 seats if the
YSK had ruled to invalidate DEHAP's November votes.



2. (U) YSK rulings cannot be appealed within the Turkish
judicial system. DYP Vice Chairman Oguz Tezmen told us
October 6 that the party is disappointed with the YSK ruling,
but respects it. Tezmen said some former DYP MPs will likely
appeal the ruling to the European Court of Human Rights, but
will do so as individuals rather than representatives of the
party. He said DYP is not planning any further legal
challenges to the November election results.



3. (C) Comment: Some opponents of the ruling AK Party
supported DYP's efforts to gain seats in Parliament in the
belief that this would cut into AK's majority. But AK
leaders' boasts that they would respond to a reallocation of
seats by calling early elections and increasing their
majority were credible -- several polls show AK support has
risen since the elections. Moreover, YSK members, a number
of political figures, pundits from across the political
spectrum, and academics said publicly and privately that a
reallocation of parliamentary seats would lead to chaos. A
leading YSK member indicated to us that he questioned the
validity of the charges against DEHAP, and noted that the YSK
had determined prior to the elections that the charges did
not justify barring DEHAP barred from participating (reftel
B).










EDELMAN