A few months after his brutal crackdown on protestors in Istanbul’s Gezi Park, Erdogan faces another challenge to his rule – a corruption scandal. Wiretaps are leaked to the press which appear to catch Erdogan discussing hiding tens of millions of euros with his son Bilal. Erdogan claims the recordings are fake and blames it on his one-time ally, cleric Fethullah Gulen.

In 2014, after three terms in office, Erdogan steps down as prime minister and becomes president, at the time a largely ceremonial role. But by appointing a puppet prime minister as his successor, he is still in control and is plotting a return to power by changing Turkey from a parliamentary to a presidential democracy.

But in 2016, just as he is about to remove followers of Fethullah Gulen from the military and the security services, there is a violent coup attempt, with swat teams sent to kill Erdogan. Erdogan’s followers pour out onto the streets in support and by dawn, the coup plotters have all been killed or caught. Erdogan then uses the emergency powers that follow the coup to crack down even harder on dissent, pushing through a referendum to change the constitution, allowing him to become Turkey’s all-powerful executive president.

In February 2023, Turkey was struck by its biggest earthquake in 70 years, killing more than 50,000 people. Many pointed government corruption as the reason why so many building collapsed. On May 14th, Erdogan faces another general election and if current opinion polls are to be believed, he would lose a fair election by a large margin. But many believe Erdogan will do anything to stay in power, as the alternative is likely to be jail for him and his family. Show less