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A majority of Turkish voters believe a change of government is necessary to improve living conditions, yet most also say the opposition is not ready to govern, revealing a paradox at the heart of Türkiye's political landscape, according to January 2026 polling data.
The Metropoll's "Türkiye's Pulse" survey for January 2026 found that 67.1% of respondents believe a change of government is necessary for improving living conditions.
However, when asked whether the opposition is ready to govern, only 37.4% agreed, while 60.8% disagreed.
The same survey found that 75.6% of respondents say the economy is poorly managed—yet the majority still does not see the opposition as a viable alternative.
In another survey, conducted by the GENAR Research January 2026 survey, shared by Hurriyet columnist Abdulkadir Selvi, found that distrust in economic management has risen.
The share of respondents saying they "do not trust" or "do not trust at all" the economic management rose to 67.6% in January 2026, up from 64.8% in December 2025.
Those expressing confidence in economic management fell from 18.5% in December to 17.6% in January.
Inflation and cost of living remained the top concern for Turkish citizens, cited by 28.8% of respondents as the country's most important issue—nearly the maximum possible score of 30%.
"The economy continues to be AK Party's soft spot," Selvi wrote.
Despite widespread economic dissatisfaction, party voting intentions have remained largely unchanged over the past year, according to the GENAR survey.
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) leads with 33.5%, followed by the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) at 31.2—a gap of just 2.3% points.
People's Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) placed third at 9.7%, with its coalition partner, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), fourth at 8.2%. Good Party (IYI Party) polled at 5%, while the newly formed Key Party rose to 4.2%.
New Welfare Party received 2.6%, Victory Party 2.5%, and Workers' Party of Türkiye (TIP) 1.2%.
"This is the first poll of 2026. But for the past year, the figures have hardly changed. Because while the world is changing, Turkish politics is going through a stagnant period," Selvi observed.
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