Iğdır Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi

Öz

In a significant number of countries around the world, democratic methods of governance are preferred in determining the political administration. In this context, representative democracy is the most widely used form of government. Political parties play an important role for the existence and functioning of representative democracies. For this reason, political parties are defined as indispensable elements of democratic life. The fact that political parties are so important for democracy constitutes an important reason for the studies on these institutions. The problems experienced in representative democracy and the criticisms against this system are tried to be overcome with different mechanisms and solutions. One of these mechanisms is participatory governance practices. An understanding of politics that consists only of voting from election to election is generally criticized. Systems and mechanisms are being developed to enable citizens to participate in governance outside election periods. Political parties play one of the most important roles in this context. One of the main documents to be consulted when conducting a study on political parties is party programs. Because party programs show the basic policies, priorities and approaches of political parties to the problems of the country. This study examines the programs of the two political parties (Justice and Development Party and Republican People's Party) that received the highest number of votes in the general election held on May 14, 2023, in terms of participatory governance and democracy.. The main purpose of this study is to reveal the similarities and differences of political parties on these issues.