News / Turkey

Erdogan approval rating hits record high following failed coup: Poll

Friday, 12 August 2016 12:39 AM [ Last Update: Friday, 12 August 2016 12:19 PM ]

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses his supporters in front of the Presidential Palace in the capital Ankara on August 10, 2016. ©Anadolu

A recent survey has shown that the popularity of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has grown by over 20 percentage points in the wake of the July 15 failed coup attempt, a record high since he took office two years ago.

According to the poll conducted by the Ankara-based MetroPOLL Strategic and Social Research Center and based on 1,275 responses, 67.6 percent of the respondents said they supported the 62-year-old founder of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

The result comes as Erdogan's highest approval rating in previous MetroPOLL opinion polls stood at 71.1 percent in early 2012, when he was serving his third term as prime minister.

Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek said on his official Twitter account that the rating surge showed “strong public support for his (Erdogan’s) handling of the coup attempt.”

The poll, carried out between July 28 and August 1, further revealed that the popularity of Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has soared by 18 points to 58 percent.

On the night of July 15, a faction of the Turkish military declared itself in charge of the country. Tanks and helicopters were used by the renegade military personnel to fight government loyalists on the streets of the capital Ankara and the most populous city of Istanbul.

The coup attempt was suppressed as people turned out on the streets to support the incumbent government.

Turkish authorities have dismissed or detained tens of thousands of people from the military, judiciary, civil services and education in the aftermath of the botched putsch.

Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said on Tuesday that around 16,000 people had been remanded in custody and were awaiting trial. Another 6,000 people are in detention and await initial court hearings.

Turkey recently sacked 1,389 members of the military personnel, including senior commanders, on suspicion of affiliation to the network of US-based opposition cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara blames for the coup bid.

The dismissals followed a previous post-putsch expulsion of 1,684 military personnel, including 149 generals and admirals.

At least 246 people were killed and more than 2,100 others sustained injuries in the coup attempt.

Gulen has condemned the coup attempt and denied any involvement in the violence.

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