With more than half of Turkiye’s eligible voters made up of millennials and those from the younger Generation Z, the opposition parties may think they have a chance to finally unseat President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after 20 years in power. But while 51 percent of the 64 million voters are young — 20 million voters were born after 1981, including 13 million Gen Zers and 6 million who are eligible to vote for the first time — they are far from a certainty at the presidential and parliamentary polls on May 14. Meet Turkiye’s Gezi Park generation, an apolitical and politically apathetic group who have grown weary of politics and have little to no belief they live in a functioning democracy. In such a crucial election, young people appear to lack a voice or be included in any candidate’s political platform, including that of the 69-year-old Erdogan or his main challenger, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, 74. It would seem Kilicdaroglu could benefit from the generational angst. Eight out of 10 Gen Zers believe it is harder to be a young person in Turkiye than in any country in the EU. A report by Turkish researcher KONDA in October revealed that four in five Turks between the ages of 18 and 30 said they were not affiliated with any political party. Furthermore, 90 percent rated the functionality of Turkiye’s democracy at five on a scale of 10, and 62 percent said the country is poorly managed. These young Turks have never really experienced a time when the ruling Justice and Development Party, known as the AKP, and its leader, Erdogan, were not in power. These were not exactly the salad days of their young lives. Fifty-four percent of those between 17 and 30 said in a recent survey that they are in need of psychological help. Meanwhile, 71 percent said they are unable to imagine a different future. Under the two-decade-long reign of the AKP, young people’s lives have become worse. Although Turkiye’s older population argues otherwise, labeling younger generations as ungrateful, the numbers speak a different truth. Opportunities are scarce for young people amid Turkiye’s deteriorating economy. Research shows 69 percent of Turks between the ages of 18 and 29 are financially dependent on their families. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate is 21 percent among people aged between 15 and 24, while other estimates put the figure as high as 33 percent. If included with European countries, Turkiye has the fifth-highest youth unemployment rate in the region. The low employment rates do not stem from a lack of higher education. Turkish Statistical Institute data from 2019 shows that the number of unemployed university graduates in Turkiye has increased tenfold in the past 15 years. One out of four unemployed people is a university graduate. In such a crucial election, young people appear to lack a voice or be included in any candidate’s political platform. Alexandra de Cramer This has all led to a massive brain drain under the AKP’s watch. According to the Turkish Statistical Institute, between 2019 and 2021, more than 250,000 citizens aged between 20 and 29 left the country. And those who stayed want to leave — and in big numbers. Research by Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung in 2021 found that 72 percent of those aged between 18 and 25 would live in another country if given the chance. And who can blame them? In the past two years, the annual inflation rate has risen over 100 percent, the Turkish currency has been mired at record lows and a devastating earthquake has claimed the lives of thousands. All these factors have immensely lowered the living standards of young people in Turkiye. No wonder 82 percent believe they are worse off than in 2021. The fact the opposition has done so little to woo young voters amid this turmoil is mind-boggling. More than 80 percent of those aged between 18 and 35 said they do not believe any party can solve their problems, according to an October report by the nongovernmental organization SOMDER. The campaign from Kilicdaroglu’s Republican People’s Party has made some gestures, including a pledge to not tax mobile phone, vehicle and video game console purchases. But this does not appear to be enough to support its promise of a better future for the younger generation. The overall tone-deaf approach to young voters highlights an unspoken problem within Turkiye: The exclusion of the young from the conversation about the country’s present and future. The age distribution of the current parliament is reflective of the ageism tilted in favor of the older generations. Out of 600 members of parliament, 319 are aged 40 and above, while only eight are below 30. Turkiye, with a median age of 31, is considered a relatively young country, but like most countries it is run by people decades older. The upcoming election should represent a generational clash, but neither side is fighting for the rights of the youth. That is why it is safe to call millennials and Gen Zers Turkiye’s betrayed generation. Not only have these young people lost all hope for the future, but they also live with the constant notion that their future has been stolen. Although young voters have the power to sway elections, they have been bullied into silence and robbed of a will to take part in their own destinies. • Alexandra de Cramer is a journalist based in Istanbul. Twitter: @aedecramer ©Syndication Bureau