Abstract:

The primary focal point of this study revolves around the influence of natural disasters on voter behavior. The case study method was employed to scrutinize the February 6th earthquake in Kahramanmaraş, chosen as the sample.Initially, the relationship between natural disasters and voter behavior is explored within the scope of retrospective voting behavior. In the subsequent section, the effects of the earthquake on voter preferences are evaluated in the context of the general elections and presidential elections held on May 14-28, 2023. The primary focus of the study is to understand the changes in voter behavior following the earthquake and to investigate how these changes are reflected in the election results. In this context, it is observed that earthquake-affected voters exhibit mediated retrospective voting behavior after the natural disaster. Consequently, earthquake-affected voters, by assessing the government's support and services in the earthquake-affected region to determine their voting preferences, have considered both the government's past performance in previous earthquakes and its efforts in the recent earthquake.

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