There is a noticeable increase in interest from different segments of society in following current developments in the economy and politics.
If we express this through a symbol, we can give an example of fluctuating indicators. Because the rate of watching these indicators has increased in the last days in direct proportion to our curiosity.
One of these indicators, as you might guess, is data showing exchange rates. We had to make it a habit to check many times a day. We have been sleeping with the exchange rates as a society for a long time, saying whether it has landed or gone.
The other indicator is public opinion polls and polls showing political preferences. We wonder which party or alliance is in what situation, who will get how many votes, and who will be a candidate for the presidency. That's the case with a survey firm or research organization that somewhere every day releases results on measures of political preference.
In this article, I will try to address some important issues while there is so much interest in voter preferences.
Last week, we talked about the need for two feelings to occur in the electorate in order for the AK Party to lose its power in order for a break in voter preferences to occur, to speak more concretely.
The first of these; It is the formation of anger in its own voters against the AK Party. The other is the feeling of trust that will be provided by an alternative party, alliance or candidate who can succeed in conveying the belief that the AK Party can take over the administration instead of the opposition, especially the AK Party voters.
When this is the case, we also express that as long as the preferences of some of the people who voted for the AK Party do not change, it will not make much sense for the opposition to be well organized.
Therefore, the electorate that needs to be persuaded is the AK Party voters, who are not essentially loyal to the party.
The most important way to achieve this is to directly reach the voters who voted for the AK Party by using the right propaganda techniques.
For example, making insulting statements to the ruling party voters on TV screens, humiliating them does not benefit other than linking the voters to their party at a higher level than before.
Imamoglu, etc. It is necessary to note here the effect of the candidates' adoption of the "ignore Erdogan, love the one who loves him" policy in the last election campaign.
The proof of what we have said is already evident in the proportions of those who are undecided. The voter, who intends to break away from the ruling party, has not yet been able to find an alternative for himself.
At this point, moves that can have an effect on changing voter preferences are required.
So what are these moves?
It is known that various studies have been carried out using neurology and other related fields in order to draw attention to the role played by emotions in elections (as cited in Marcus et al. Özler, 2014).
These studies show that two emotions come to the fore in the decision-making process. First; is anxiety. As the anxiety increases, the level of interest and perception of the voters increases considerably in terms of parties, candidates and following political developments. The second emotion is enthusiasm, which determines who voters will vote for. In an environment of increasing anxiety, voters tend to follow politics more closely and move away from their voting habits.
For example, the anxiety level of a voter who voted for the AK Party in the past but was confused against his party due to his actions is increasing in the new process. Therefore, he begins to see the mistakes of his party and to listen to other political parties or leaders.
On the other hand, if the feeling of enthusiasm is dominant in the electorate, the level of political interest remains low. Because there is no quest. For this reason, he has closed his mind and heart to others and waits for it to be placed in front of the ballot box.
In that case, discourses that will not lead the voters to polarization, but that will lead them to question the government, should be developed.
At this point, it should be noted that the search for a third alliance, which has been on the agenda recently, is of great importance and may change the balance.
Because, at least for today, there are strong indications that the segments that are expected to break away from within the AK Party will not support an alliance led by the CHP and, on the contrary, will unite around the AK Party again.
It should not be forgotten that the existence of doubts about what will replace the existing causes the anxiety to increase and ensures that the existing one maintains its power.
Organizations that cannot inspire confidence cannot create enthusiasm in the voters and lose their psychological superiority.