Facing Inflation Anxiety at the Polls

Life in Turkey has rapidly become more expensive due to the enormous inflation. This weighs heavily on people’s minds ahead of the municipal elections on Sunday – in the cities as well as in rural areas. Whether it’s rent or income, the concerns are significant.

Antalya is usually congested, not just during the election campaign. The streets of the two-million metropolis on the Turkish Riviera are constantly jammed, especially during rush hour, making it difficult to get around.

Carpet trader Veli believes the city is doing too little to combat the chaos, as he hasn’t seen any road construction work under the current mayor in the past five years. He doesn’t even want to imagine what this means for the city in the long run, due to Antalya’s growth and increasing number of immigrants.

It’s no surprise that traffic is one of the central election campaign topics. Incumbent Mayor Muhittin Böcek of the CHP and his challenger Hakan Tütüncü of the AKP both promote the number of transportation projects they plan to implement.

Rising Rents

Despite this, saleswoman Tugba does not feel genuinely enthusiastic – she says none of the candidates appeal to her, as they only pursue their own interests, which is why she’s leaning towards not voting.

Aged 35, Tugba has just returned to her hometown after her divorce, right into a housing crisis that has had a significant impact on her. Rent is steadily increasing, having been raised twice in a year from 1,700 to 4,000 Lira, and then six months later to 9,000 Lira.

That’s more than 250 euros, an enormous price by Turkish standards. Although the city and its residents benefit from tourism, many are struggling with the prices. They have risen significantly because many Russians and Ukrainians moved there after the Russian attack on Ukraine.

The Boom and Its Consequences

Expensive rents and traffic congestion are typical urban issues in Turkey. Given that the booming tourist region is attracting many workers and the city is rapidly expanding, these issues are particularly pronounced in Antalya.

Veli, the carpet trader, has been running his business in the old town for over 30 years. The alley of light sandstone smells of sewage. This is another problem that needs to be solved, as it smells even worse in the summer at 45 degrees, and he is ashamed of it. The mayor has only visited once during this term, far too seldom, according to Veli. Although he is a CHP supporter, he might try the AKP candidate in this election.

Is Vegetable Farming Still Worthwhile?

About 100 kilometers away, the scene is quite different in Kumluca. Instead of traffic chaos, one finds greenhouses as far as the eye can see, with a scent of orange blossoms in the air. The region around this small town relies heavily on agriculture, which is, however, quite challenging.

Nursel, Hamide, and their neighbors are farmers, and during their tea break, they complain about the prices of their vegetables. Nursel shows her greenhouse, where she grows eggplants, but can only sell them for 30 Lira per kilo, despite the effort involved in cultivation and harvesting. It’s an amount that wouldn’t get her much at the supermarket.

Thirty Lira is equivalent to about one euro. Nursel’s neighbor Hamide, who also grows vegetables, says she doesn’t know how she will manage to pay for everything. The middlemen in the market hall still pay the prices from the previous year, even though everything is getting more expensive – diesel, fertilizer, pesticides.