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Gunes Murat Tezcur
   
Research
BOOK
MANUSCRIPT
The Paradox of Moderation: Muslim Reformers in Iran and Turkey (under review)
An influential theory in political science argues
that integration of radical political movements into pluralistic political
system brings their moderation. As radicals form vote-seeking electoral
parties and avoid confrontation with the state for strategic reasons, they
gradually eschew their extremist platforms and adopt centrist platforms with
broad appeal. This theory has been extensively applied to the socialists in
Europe.
The book focuses on the period from the late
1980s to the first half of the 2000s. The focus is on the trajectory
of the reform front (RF) in Iran and the Justice and Development Party (JDP)
in Turkey. The book
addresses three questions: (1) what factors explain the evolution of
the Iranian and Turkish Islamic political actors since the early 1990s;
(2) Under what conditions do Islamic political movements contribute to
the process of democratic transition and consolidation; (3) What are
the implications of post-Islamism for secularism and liberal-democracy?
It argues that moderation of radicals does not necessarily produce results that are
conducive to democratization. Moreover behavioral moderation is contingent on
prior ideological transformation. The comparison of Iran and Turkey follows
the logic of "method of agreement" and conducts a comparative
historical analysis of the evolution of Islamic political actors in two dramatically different
political settings. While post-Islamists developed platforms with wide
public appeal and emerged victorious at the ballot box, their moderation
eventually undermined their capacity to achieve democratic transition and
consolidation
It is based on extensive fieldwork in Iran and
Turkey between spring 2002 and spring 2008. The sources include ethnographic research
(i.e. in-depth interviews and participant observant study of elections), original survey data,
statistical analyses of electoral results, and printed and electronical material in primary
languages (Persian and Turkish).
SCHOLARLY
PUBLICATIONS
"The
Moderation Theory Revisited: The Case of Islamic Political Actors," Party
Politics (forthcoming)
An
influential political science literature argues that the integration of
radical political parties into the political system leads to their
moderation. These parties trade off their ideological platforms for electoral
viability and political legality. Radicals become moderates as a result of
strategic interests. This paper revisits this thesis and applies it to the
Islamic political actors in Iran and Turkey by employing the comparative
method of agreement. It reaches three conclusions. First, moderation thesis
provides strong tools in explaining the evolution of Islamists into Muslim
democrats. Second, moderation is a double-edged sword especially in regimes
with strong undemocratic characteristics. Moderation of radicals may result
in their domestication that does not contribute to democratic transition or
consolidation. Finally, change in the ideologies of political elites is
central in understanding behavioral change. The data sources include
ethnographic work, primary language sources, and historical narratives.
"Religiosity
and the Islamic Rule in Iran," Journal for the Scientific Study of
Religion 47, 2 (June 2008): 211-224.
This
article investigates the relationship between religiosity and
support for Islamic rule in the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). Are
high levels of religiosity associated with an ideology characterized by
clerical rule, supremacy of Islamic law, and state enforcement of
Islam? The data come from a random sampling survey conducted in Tehran
in August 2003. It covers a range of questions on religiosity, social,
and political attitudes, and has a sample of 412 respondents. The
analyses show that religiosity is closely affiliated with an
ideological understanding of Islam in Tehran. Interestingly, political
dissatisfaction does not negatively affect this association. Shi‘ism in
Iran has evolved from a “world-shaking” force into a
“world-legitimating” force.
"Elections and Opposition in the Islamic
Republic of Iran," in Political Participation in the Middle East and
North Africa Ellen
Lust-Okar and Saloua Zerhouni edited (Boulders, CO: Lynne Reinner,
2008)
This chapter
offers an analytical survey of the elections in the Islamic Republic of Iran
(IRI) with a focus on two interrelated questions: 1) what are the major
characteristics of, and the nature of political participation within, the
elections in the Islamic Republic? 2) how do elections affect the evolution
of factional politics? A main argument of this chapter is that elections
primarily serve to perpetuate pluralist authoritarianism in the IRI. Rather
than being catalyst for democratization or simply solidifying the regime's control
over society, elections manage inter-factional conflict and introduce an
element of uncertainty and dynamism to Iranian politics unparalleled in many
other authoritarian regimes. The chapter is based on the author's participant
observant study of the 2005 presidential elections, systematic analysis of
electoral data, and compilation of printed and electronic news in Persian
especially during the electoral periods. Fieldwork in 2005 involved observing
campaigns of the presidential candidates, interviewing campaign managers,
workers, journalists and voters.
"Constitutionalism,
Judiciary and Democracy in Islamic Societies," Polity 39, 4 (October 2007): 479-501.
This
article reconsiders the relationship between secularism, liberalism,
and democracy in non-secularized societies by focusing on judicial
activism. The goal is to identify the forms of constitutionalism and
judicial review that are necessary for the sustainability of democracy
in societies where exclusive and holistic interpretations of religion
remain pervasive. How is it possible to prevent majority rule from
decaying into the tyranny of the majority in such societies? Neither
the guardianship regimes embodied by the Iranian and Turkish republics
nor Islamic democracy provide viable models that overcome the tension
between constitutionalism and democracy. However, a conflict between
these two principles in Islamic societies is avoidable. Judicial
review, sanctioned by democratically written
liberal constitutions and not guarded by non-elected institutions such as military,
"Religious
Participation among Muslims: Iranian Exceptionalism," Critique:
Critical Middle Eastern Studies 15, 3 (Fall 2006): 217-232.
Recent
research has suggested that secularization, understood either as the decline
of religious beliefs or the marginalization of religion in public life, has
not occurred in most parts of the world. Islam especially has remained
a vibrant force that affects how people make sense of social relations and
politics. However, the indicators of religiosity in predominantly Muslim
countries have not been studied extensively. Although these societies are
assumed to be characterized by high levels of religious belief, research has
demonstrated significant variance in mosque attendance rates. In particular,
mosque attendance rates in Iran are surprisingly low. This article aims to
specify the reasons for the low rates of mosque attendance among Iranians.
The data for the article comes from the World Values Survey conducted in
Muslim countries and a survey conducted in Tehran by the authors. Survey
evidence indicates a strong correlation between frequency of mosque
attendance and positive evaluations of political governance. It also reveals
that many people with strong religious beliefs do not attend Friday
congregational prayers.
CURRENT RESEARCH PROJECTS Religious Political
Parties in Electoral Competition: A Comparative Study of Indonesia and Turkey
(with Mirjam Kunkler) Research
Project funded by the United States Institute of Peace Dynamics
of Kurdish Nationalism: An Organizational Approach
Working
PaperWar on Terror, Democracy
and Culture of Impunity: The Case of Turkey
Working
PaperMuslims NGOs and Democracy Promotion
Working Paper Cleavages
in Turkish Politics: A Geographical Perspective
Working
Paper Women,
Islam, and Political Candidacy: An Experimental Study in Turkey (with Richard
Matland) Working
Project
DATA SETS
Tehran Surveys (August 2003 and December 2007):
Multi-stage area probability surveys on religious values and political
attitudes with a sample of 412 and 450 respectively .
Iranian
Presidential Elections of 2005: Complete results at county level (around 320
units of observations).
Turkish Parliamentary Elections: Complete results
from the 1995, 1999, 2002, and 2007 elections at county level
(more than 900 units of observations), and at neighborhood level for selected provinces.
Turkey:
Socioeconomic and Demographic Indicators at county and neighborhood levels.
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