The ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) have been sending signals that they will be committed to the People's Alliance that they formed for the previous presidential elections and continue to cooperate in the local elections.

As the local elections' date slated for March 2019 approaches, political parties have been ramping up their efforts to formulate strategies for the elections. While, the AK Party and the MHP have already indicated that they are seeking to continue their cooperation, the other political parties have yet to make statements about their possible alliances with each other.

"We are committed to the People's Alliance," MHP Chairman Devlet Bahçeli stated yesterday during his party's group meeting in Parliament. In relation to the MHP's preparations for the elections, Bahçeli said that his party had a fruitful camp last week where party policies and strategies for the elections were determined.

Bahçeli underscored that the MHP will nominate candidates in all provinces and districts in local elections except for the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. He also stated that they will ignore the efforts of some who are aiming to undermine the alliance.

In relation to the alliance with the MHP, Mehmet Özhaseki the AK Party deputy chairman said yesterday that "the road map regarding the alliance will be determined by reasoning and negotiations." He added that the details will be ironed out following talks between the parties.

Following his opening speech at Parliament on Monday, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Bahçeli sat together. After the talks, Erdoğan underscored that in the upcoming days he will meet with Bahçeli to discuss the alliance.

Speaking at his party's group meeting, Erdoğan also highlighted yesterday that the AK Party will nominate its candidates in all election places. He underlined that the AK Party has been accelerating its efforts for preparations for the elections. Erdoğan added that the party will draw a road map by taking the lessons learned in the June 24 elections into consideration. He added that merit will be the most significant criteria for determining the candidates in the local elections.

The People's Alliance between the MHP and the AK Party was formed ahead of the June 24 parliamentary and presidential elections. The alliance received a majority in Parliament, while their presidential candidate, the incumbent president, also won the election by 52.6 percent of the votes. As both parties consider the results of the June 24 elections as successful, they now seek to continue their alliance in the local elections.