Va-PoReg Country Report Ottoman Empire 1900–1923

The sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1876 until 1909 was Abdul Hamid II. Under him, the Ottoman Empire got its first constitution, which introduced a bicameral parliament, the General Assembly.¹ Male suffrage was introduced in 1876.² However, this first era of Constitutionalism was short lived and only lasted from 1876 until 02/14/1878³, before Abdul Hamid II reinstated his absolute power.⁴ According to LIED, no multiparty executive or legislative elections were held during the specified period. However, in 1908, multiparty executive and legislative elections were conducted. For that period LIED identifies political liberties as absent, and V-Dem’s PCLI is also classified by us as indicating that political liberties are absent. For 1900-1906, V-Dem’s JCE indicates that judicial constraints on the executive are limited. At the same time, V-Dem’s LCE shows no value, which, with appropriate caution, can be interpreted as an absence of legislative constraints on the executive. For 1907, V-Dem’s JCE is classified by us as indicating that judicial constraints on the executive were limited, whereas V-Dem’s LCE is classified by us as indicating that legislative constraints on the executive were absent. For 1908, V-Dem’s JCE is interpreted by us as indicating that judicial constraints on the executive were moderate, while V-Dem’s LCE is classified by us as indicating that legislative constraints on the executive were absent. Starting in July 1908, the Young Turk Revolution catalyzed the reinstatement of the Ottoman Constitution of 1876, leading to the revival of the previously suspended Ottoman parliament.⁵ This era witnessed the conduct of elections, marking the first instance of multiple political parties vying for parliamentary seats. The general elections were held in November and December 1908, with the parliament convening on 12/17/1908.⁶ On 04/27/1909, Sultan Abdul Hamid II was removed from power through a unanimous parliamentary vote, paving the way for Mehmed V to assume the throne.⁷ The Committee of Union and Progress (CUP) seized control in a coup d’état on 01/23/1913, establishing the dominance of the „Three Pashas,“ although the Empire remained a monarchy under Sultan Mehmed V As documented by LIED, multiparty executive and legislative elections were conducted between the years 1909 and 1911. Subsequently, no further multiparty executive and legislative elections were held until 1913. Between 1914 and 1917, both executive and legislative elections were conducted, but they were not categorized as multiparty. In 1918, multiparty executive and legislative elections were again absent, and from 1921 onwards, both executive and legislative elections were held, but they were not categorized as multiparty. While the Young Turk Revolution changed the design of the regime, we still classify it as an autocratic monarchy because of the lack of political rights. .Until 1907, according to Polity5, during this period, the executive held unlimited authority with no institutionalized constraints on decision-making power. In 1908, as per Polity5’s classification, the executive’s authority was subject to minor institutional constraints. From 1909 to 1917, as per Polity5’s classification, the executive’s authority was significantly constrained by institutional checks during this time. For 1909, V-Dem’s JCE is interpreted by us as indicating that judicial constraints on the executive were moderate, while V-Dem’s LCE is classified by us as indicating that legislative constraints on the executive were limited. During 1910-1912, V-Dem’s JCE is classified by us as indicating that judicial constraints on the executive were moderate, whereas V-Dem’s LCE is classified by us as indicating that legislative constraints on the executive were absent. From 1913 to 1918, V-Dem’s JCE is interpreted by us as indicating that judicial constraints on the executive were limited, while V-Dem’s LCE is classified by us as indicating that legislative constraints on the executive were absent. From 1919 to 1922, V-Dem’s JCE is classified by us as indicating that judicial constraints on the executive were moderate, whereas V-Dem’s LCE is classified by us as indicating that legislative constraints on the executive were limited. In this regime period, LIED identifies political liberties as absent. V-Dem’s PCLI is classified by us as ambiguous in 1909 and as not really present from 1910 to 1912 and from 1919 to 1922 regarding the status of political liberties. For the remaining years, V-Dem’s PCLI is classified by us as indicating that political liberties were absent.

The establishment of the Republic of Turkey formally concluded the Ottoman monarchy. For the year 1923, V-Dem’s JCE and LCE are both interpreted by us as indicating moderate constraints on the executive.

For time after 10/29/1923, see Turkey.