Türkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), founded under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Aug. 14, 2001, marked its 25th anniversary Friday, completing a quarter-century in which it has won every general election it has contested and reshaped the country’s political landscape.

Established as Türkiye’s 39th political party by a movement led by Erdoğan, then a former Istanbul mayor, the AK Party entered national politics with a pledge for sweeping political change.

"From now on, nothing in Türkiye will be the same,” Erdoğan said at the party’s launch. Two days later, he was unanimously elected its chair.

Just 15 months after its establishment, the AK Party won the Nov. 3, 2002, general election with 34.28% of the vote. Erdoğan was barred from running because of a political ban, and Abdullah Gül formed the 58th government.

Erdoğan enters Parliament

After legal changes lifted his political ban, Erdoğan won a parliamentary seat in a rerun election in the southeastern province of Siirt on March 9, 2003.

Following Gül’s resignation as prime minister, Erdoğan formed Türkiye’s 59th government on March 15, beginning more than a decade as premier.

The AK Party consolidated its position in subsequent elections, receiving 41.7% in the 2004 local elections and 46.58% in the 2007 general election.

The party faced one of its most serious legal challenges in 2008 when Türkiye’s chief prosecutor filed a case seeking its closure and political bans for 71 figures, including Erdoğan and Gül.

Six Constitutional Court judges voted to close the party and five opposed the move, falling short of the qualified majority required for a ban.

Referendums, election victories

A constitutional referendum in September 2010 became another milestone for the party, with 57.88% voting in favor of a package of constitutional amendments.

The AK Party subsequently received 49.83% of the vote in the 2011 general election, one of its highest nationwide vote shares.

In 2014, Erdoğan shifted from the prime minister’s office to the presidency. He won 51.79% of the vote on Aug. 10, becoming Türkiye’s first president elected directly by popular vote.

Ahmet Davutoğlu succeeded Erdoğan as AK Party chair. After the June 2015 election produced no single-party government, the AK Party regained its parliamentary majority in the Nov. 1 snap election.

Binali Yıldırım became party chair and prime minister in May 2016.

Presidential system changes

Türkiye’s political trajectory changed sharply with the July 15, 2016, coup attempt by the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ).

Erdoğan called on citizens to take to the streets and public squares, while resistance to the coup attempt helped foster closer political cooperation between the AK Party and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), laying the groundwork for the People’s Alliance.

A constitutional referendum on April 16, 2017, approved a shift to an executive presidential system with 51.41% support.

The changes also allowed the president to retain party membership. Erdoğan rejoined the AK Party after 979 days and was reelected its chair at an extraordinary congress in May 2017.

The AK Party and MHP contested the June 24, 2018, elections under the People’s Alliance, as Türkiye held presidential and parliamentary elections simultaneously for the first time.

Erdoğan won the presidency with 52.59%, becoming the first president under the new system, while the AK Party received 42.56% in the parliamentary vote.

The alliance continued into the 2019 local elections, in which the AK Party received 44.33% nationwide.

The COVID-19 pandemic later disrupted the party’s congress process, but its seventh ordinary congress was eventually held in March 2021, with Erdoğan again elected chair.

Erdoğan wins new term in 2023

Türkiye returned to the polls in May 2023 for presidential and parliamentary elections.

Erdoğan received 49.52% in the first presidential round, forcing a runoff. The AK Party received 35.62% of the parliamentary vote and secured 268 seats.

Erdoğan defeated his challenger in the May 28 runoff with 52.18%, securing another presidential term.

The victory extended the AK Party’s record of finishing first in every general election it had contested since its establishment and maintained its position as the longest-governing party since Türkiye entered its multiparty era in 1946.

The March 31, 2024, local elections represented a setback for the AK Party, which received 35.49% of the vote and won 24 provincial and 357 district municipalities.

Erdoğan acknowledged the message delivered by voters and pledged to evaluate the results, after which the party began replacing provincial and district officials.

That renewal accelerated at the AK Party’s eighth ordinary congress on Feb. 23, 2025. Thirty-nine new members joined its Central Decision and Management Board, renewing 52% of the body.

Further organizational changes followed, including replacements of provincial chairs in 15 provinces.

‘Terror-free Türkiye’ initiative

One of the latest chapters in the AK Party’s quarter-century in politics has been the "Terror-Free Türkiye” initiative, which followed a call by MHP Chair Devlet Bahçeli in October 2024 and was subsequently backed by Erdoğan.

A parliamentary National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission began work in August 2025 to address terrorism, social integration, national unity, democracy and the rule of law.

The commission adopted its report in February 2026.

A bill setting out the legal framework for the process was submitted to Parliament on Aug. 5, 2026. The legislation links its implementation to an official determination that the PKK terrorist group and affiliated structures have ended their operational existence and surrendered weapons under their control.

Parliament approved the legislation on Aug. 10 with 467 votes in favor, 87 against and seven abstentions.