Factors affecting voter preferences: The example of Aksaray province

In democratic governments, which are now accepted as indisputable, the preferences of the governed are the most important element. All political parties and candidates trying to show their presence in the political world want to achieve success by reaching the maximum rate of votes. The success of political parties and candidates is possible by analyzing the expectations of the voters well and producing new policies focused on the voters in line with the expectations. Understanding the voting behavior of the voters and knowing the factors affecting these behaviors is one of the facts that political parties and candidates should focus on. Although scientific research conducted to explain voter behavior has become a wide field within political sociology, researchers are still discussing the factors affecting voter preference in the face of new global and national developments. In this thesis study, a survey consisting of 30 questions was applied to 403 individuals registered in the Aksaray city center and able to vote (over the age of 18) to understand the voter behavior and statistical analyzes of the answers given were made. In this thesis study, demographic, economic, sociological and socio-political factors affecting the voters in Aksaray were examined. As a result, it is seen that the most important parameters in the political choice of voters living in Aksaray province are welfare-survival, immigration policies and the search for a new leader.