All Turkish citizens entering the age of 20 in the year of election and referendum shall have the right to vote in elections and take part in a referendum, the months and days of the age not taken into account. The exercise of these rights shall be regulated by law. Conscripts serving in the Armed Services, students in military schools, and detainees and convicts in prisons cannot vote. Citizens have the right to form political parties, and to join and withdraw from them in accordance with the established procedure. To become a member of a party one must be over 21 years of age.
Political parties are indispensable elements of the democratic political system.
Political parties shall be founded without prior permission and shall pursue their activities in accordance with the provisions set forth in the Constitution and law. The statutes and programmes of political parties shall not be in conflict with the indivisible integrity of the State with its territory and nation, human rights, national sovereignty, and the principles of the democratic and secular Republic. Political parties whose aim is to support and to set up the domination of a class or group, or any kind of dictatorship, cannot be formed. Political parties shall not organise and function abroad, shall not form discriminative auxiliary bodies such as women's or youth branches, nor shall they establish foundations. Judges and prosecutors, members of higher judicial organs, members of the teaching staff at institutions of higher education, members of the Higher Education Council, civil servants in public organisations and corporations, and other public servants who are not considered to be labourers by virtue of the services they perform, students, and members of the Armed Forces, shall not become members of political parties.