As Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s popularity ratings plummet and public support for the opposition increased, Murat Gezici, director of the Gezici Research Center in Turkey, said: The government will hold a referendum on a constitutional amendment in March and April.

• Reconnaissance… Erdogan’s popularity and his alliance continue to collapse

• Speculation about whether Erdogan will remain in power

Gizici made the remarks while participating in a TV program featuring Fouad Cayman, a faculty member at the University of Sabancı, and Helmi Dashdemir, president of the research company Ouztemar.

Murat Geziji, the head of the Central Elections Commission, said the referendum would include amendments to the election law that would transfer the country to a semi-presidential system that requires a candidate to obtain 40+1 votes.

“The government sees this condition as responsible for the problems existing in the country“, he said, adding that the AKP government is seeking to change the electoral system, believing that this condition is responsible for the country’s problems.

He pointed to a desire to move to a semi-presidential system, which could lead to a referendum in this regard in the coming spring months.

The statements come in light of the current controversy in Turkey over the AKP’s attempt to remove the presidential candidate’s 50+1 vote from the first round.

• Where do Egypt’s Muslim brotherhood flee to Turkey?

The controversy was sparked by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s meeting with Felicity Party leader Temel Karamollaoglu. A press writer claimed that Jamil Shishak, a member of the Supreme Consultative Committee of the Turkish Presidency, submitted a proposal to remove the 50+1 requirement for a presidential candidate to facilitate Erdogan’s election victory.

Four days ago, a poll conducted by the Metropole Center showed that the Turkish opposition bloc had an advantage in the polls over the AKP-MHP alliance.

A total of 1,568 people participated in the poll in 28 provinces, asking the question “Which political party will you vote for in the general elections?, with 32.6% of the respondents saying that they will vote for the ruling Justice and Development Party, while only 7.4% said they will support the Nationalist Movement Party, which is below the election threshold in Turkey“.