Affective Polarization and Democratic Erosion: Lessons from Turkey in Comparative Perspective

Abstract

This panel examines how affective polarization reshapes political competition and democratic stability, using Turkey as a critical case to understand when partisan enmity erodes democratic norms. Drawing on data from the 2002–2023 electoral cycle, it traces the widening emotional divide between government and opposition supporters and its effects on trust, tolerance, and regime legitimacy. The Turkish experience—marked by executive centralization, judicial capture, and weakened accountability—illustrates how polarization can reinforce authoritarian drift. By contrast, in Greece and Italy, similar trends have destabilized party systems without institutional collapse. Comparing these trajectories, the panel asks: under what conditions does polarization undermine democracy rather than remain contained? How do institutions, media, and elite strategies shape its impact? By combining various data sources, contributors utilize Turkey as an analytical bridge to explain the divergent outcomes of polarization across the European periphery.

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