Ankara, on Tuesday, July 17, (bdnews24.com/Reuters) - The upcoming parliamentary elections in Turkey are considered to be one of the most significant in recent history due to the ongoing conflict between the ruling AK Party and the country's secular elite. The AK Party, which is pro-business and center-right, is expected to win the election with a smaller majority. This has resulted in positive reactions from investors, who approve of the AK Party's economic policies but are concerned about potential tensions with secularists, including the army. The European Union is also closely monitoring the election, hoping for a new government that can revive Turkey's reform process. According to some experts, investors are not taking the risks seriously. Wolfango Piccoli from Eurasia Group, a political risk consultancy, believes that the recent elections in Turkey will not resolve the country's institutional deadlock and only delay the problems. Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan was forced to hold early elections after facing opposition from the army, judges, and political parties in his attempt to elect Abdullah Gul as the next president. Secularists are concerned that Erdogan and Gul, who have ties to Islamism, are trying to weaken the separation of state and religion in Turkey, although both men deny these claims. If the AK Party were to secure a majority of two thirds or more in the upcoming election, they would have the power to make changes to Turkey's secular constitution and elect their preferred presidential candidate without taking into account the concerns of the opposition. To ease the worries of secularists and appeal to the urban middle class in Turkey, Erdogan has removed many of the more Islamist members of his party and has nominated more centrist and female candidates for this election. Erdogan has also hinted at being willing to compromise on the issue of the presidency, which has traditionally been a stronghold for secularists. Despite polls showing that the AK Party could receive around 40 percent of the vote, an increase from the 34 percent they received in the 2002 election, they may end up with fewer seats due to more parties expected to surpass the 10 percent threshold to enter parliament. Polarisation is expected in the upcoming parliamentary elections, with the main opposition party, the centre-left Republican People's Party (CHP), the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), and a significant number of independent candidates, particularly those who are pro-Kurdish, likely to secure seats. According to Ayse Ayata, a professor at Ankara's Middle East Technical University, the parliament is expected to be made up of contrasting viewpoints. Ayata suggests that a coalition government could help reduce polarization. A total of 42.5 million Turks will be eligible to vote out of a population of 74 million, including four million first-time voters. Analysts anticipate heated debates in the new parliament between AK Party ex-Islamists and CHP arch-secularists, as well as between Kurdish deputies advocating for more rights for their community and MHP ultra-nationalists who see these demands as a threat to Turkish national security and identity. Mehmet Ali Birand, a veteran TV commentator, believes the upcoming parliament will test whether Turks and Kurds can come to a consensus on resolving the Kurdish issue. The conflict between Turkish security forces and Kurdish separatist rebels in the southeast, which has claimed over 30,000 lives since 1984, remains a prominent issue. Despite this, election rallies have been primarily focused on terrorism rather than Turkey's EU accession bid, reflecting a growing disillusionment with the EU among the public.