[5] The elections took place amid security concerns after ceasefire negotiations between the government and Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) rebels collapsed in July, causing a resumption of separatist conflict in the predominantly Kurdish south-east of the country.

[9][10][11][12][13] The election was preceded by the deadliest terrorist attack in Turkey's modern history, after two suicide bombers killed 102 people attending a peace rally in central Ankara.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan invited AKP leader Ahmet Davutoğlu to form a government on 9 July 2015, by virtue of leading the largest party in Parliament.

[23] Stating that early elections were the most likely possibility, Davutoğlu requested a meeting with MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli in a last-ditch attempt to form an AKP-MHP coalition.

Bahçeli had previously announced his support for an early election, but later put forward four non-negotiable conditions for a possible coalition after a breakout of violence in the predominantly Kurdish south-eastern region of Turkey.

In what was branded a 'civilian coup' by the CHP, Erdoğan refused to invite Kılıçdaroğlu to form a government as is required by the Constitution, despite the fact that there was still five days left before the 45-day period ended.

[27] Even in the event of a coalition, it was deemed unlikely that two parties could maintain an agreement for the length of the parliament, making an early election before the required date of June 2019 highly likely.

[29] MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli and many other opposition politicians criticised Erdoğan for interfering and allegedly attempting to tamper with the coalition efforts in order to force an early vote.

[32] During the coalition negotiations, reports that the AKP were preparing for an early election resulted in numerous suggestions for possible polling dates, with the most likely (and eventually confirmed) option being in November 2015.

The party's leader Emine Ülker Tarhan claimed that they would not take part in an election called on the basis of Erdoğan's desire for a presidential system or the deaths of Turkish soldiers fighting the PKK.

[74] The Kurdish Islamist Free Cause Party (HÜDA-PAR) also ruled out contesting the election, claiming that it would not be a healthy means of gauging voters' opinions under the security circumstances in the south-east of the country.

[75] Despite submitting their candidate lists to the YSK before the deadline, the Centre Party later announced on 22 September that they were withdrawing from the election, claiming that they would instead be diverting efforts to improving their local branches and support.

[79][80][81][82] The opposition have accused the AKP of 'punishing' the south-east, especially the southern town of Cizre where the HDP won 85% of the vote in June, by imposing prolonged curfews lasting nearly a week to combat PKK militants there.

Notable changes included the candidacies of many of the party's high-profile founders such as Binali Yıldırım, Faruk Çelik and Ali Babacan, all of which had been unable to seek re-election in June for reaching their three-term limit.

Abdurrahim Boynukalın, who had been heavily criticised for his role in the assault on the Hürriyet newspaper headquarters in September 2015, was stripped from the AKP lists, though he later claimed that he himself had not applied to become a candidate.

[93] Although the party produced an election song to accompany their Önce Türkiye slogan, events such as the manifesto announcement and rallies took place in rather subdued atmospheres in respect for fallen soldiers during the conflict in the south-east.

[101] The move was attributed to party leader Devlet Bahçeli attempting to avoid strong rivals in any future leadership contest, causing a backlash on Twitter with the slogan "No Akşener, no vote either!".

[105] Following a Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) attack in Dağlıca that killed 16 soldiers, the HDP's other co-leader Selahattin Demirtaş cancelled a planned overseas trip in Germany and returned to Turkey.

[111] The leader of the Kurdish federalist Rights and Freedoms Party (HAK-PAR), Fehmi Demir, died in a traffic accident on 25 October 2015, on the last day of overseas voting.

The MHP's vote share was either shown to be stable or to have retracted by around 2–3%, which was attributed to the party's much criticised stance during the June–July 2015 Turkish Parliament speaker elections and the ending of the Solution process.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) claimed that concerns over media bias and voter safety cast a 'shadow' over the results, while political parties expressed suspicions over a controversial collapse in the Supreme Electoral Council's ballot tracking systems during the counting process as well as irregularities in the voting procedure.

Their report, which contained accounts from the Governor of Hakkâri and the Kaymakam of Yüksekova, stated that the HDP-run municipalities in the region were openly recruiting militants for the PKK and consulting them before taking decisions.

[126] Although many commentators saw the AKP's loss of a majority as a welcome development in terms of press freedom, growing censorship of pro-opposition media outlets in the run-up to the November election attracted both national and international concern.

[131] In the early hours of 1 October, Hürriyet columnist and the presenter of the political talk show Tarafsız Bölge (Neutral Area), Ahmet Hakan, was attacked by four people outside his home.

[136][137] The state news agency TRT was identified by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) as giving 10 times more coverage to the AKP than to the opposition parties.

[142] AKP MP and Youth Wing leader Abdurrahim Boynukalın led the mob against Hürriyet, drawing heavy criticism and subsequently being sent to court for inciting hatred and vandalism.

[147] Selahattin Demirtaş announced on 9 September that 400 HDP branch offices had come under attack in the last two days and accused the AKP's leaders of trying to push the country into civil war.

[156][157] In September 2015, the government allegedly began pressuring the YSK to divert voters living in villages linked to the south-eastern district of Cizre to the town centre instead, citing security concerns.

This caused confusion amongst citizens since automatic clocks defied the Turkish government's decision and went back an hour on 25 October in conformity with the global end to daylight saving time.

[178] At 17:00 local time on 31 October 2015, the Mayor of the Göynücek district of Amasya, Kemal Şahin, published a photo on his Facebook account showing a ballot paper stamped for the AKP, with the caption 'I've cast my vote.