Berk Esen
E-mail : berk.esen
sabanciuniv.edu
Education :
Ph.D., Cornell University, 2015 (Government)
M.A., Cornell University, 2011 (Government)
M.A., Jacobs University Bremen, 2009 (Integrated Social Sciences)
M.A., Sabanci University, 2006 (Political Science)
B.A., Vanderbilt University, 2004 (Political Science, Economics, and Western Civilization)
Work Experience :
Associate Professor Sabanci University
Faculty of Arts and Sciences
September 2023 – Present
IPC-Mercator Fellow German Institute for International Affairs and Security
September 2021 – August 2022
Assistant Professor Sabanci University
Faculty of Arts and Sciences
September 2020 – September 2023
Assistant Professor Bilkent University, Ankara Turkey
Department of International Relations
September 2015 – August 2020
Post-doctoral Fellow Sabanci University, Istanbul Turkey
Faculty of Arts and Sciences
January 2015 – August 2015
Areas of Interest :
Turkish Politics, Political Parties, Civil-military relations, Authoritarian RegimesAwards :
- International Political Science Association Executive Council Member - International Political Science Association 2023
- International Political Science Association Executive Council Member - IPSA 2023
Membership :
International Political Science Association American Political Science Association Siyasi İlimler Türk DerneğiPublications :
| Article |
| Esen, Berk and Gumuscu, Sebnem (2025) "How to fight Turkey's authoritarian turn", Journal of Democracy, Vol.36, No.3, 106-120 (SSCI) |
| Esen, Berk and Gumuscu, Sebnem (2025) "After crackdown, is Turkey an autocracy?". Published Online First https://www.journalofdemocracy.org/online-exclusive/after-crackdown-is-turkey-an-autocracy/ |
| Abrami, Samuele Carlo Ayrtcn and Gasco, Riccardo and Esen, Berk (2025) "Turkey's 2024 municipal elections: a turning point for democratic resilience?". Published Online First https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13629395.2025.2459558 |
| Esen, Berk (2025) "Judicial transformation in a competitive authoritarian regime: evidence from the Turkish case", Law and Policy, Vol.47, No.1 (SSCI) |
| Yavuzyılmaz, Hakan and Esen, Berk (2025) "Formal yet ineffective opposition coordination under competitive authoritarianism: nation alliance in Turkey", Third World Quarterly, Vol.46, No.2, 237-257 (SSCI) |
| Ugur-Cinar, Meral and Acikgoz, Ali and Esen, Berk (2024) "Party change and cleavage shifting in the global South: the case of Ecevit's CHP in Turkey", Journal of Southeast European and Black Sea, Vol.24, No.4, 837-857 (SSCI) |
| Esen, Berk and Gumuscu, Sebnem and Yavuzyılmaz, Hakan (2024) "Competitive yet unfair: May 2023 elections and authoritarian resilience in Turkey", South European Society and Politics, Vol.28, No.3, 359-387 (SSCI) |
| Taraktaş, Başak and Esen, Berk and Uskudarli, Suzan (2024) "Tweeting through a public health crisis: communication strategies of right-wing populist leaders during the COVID-19 pandemic", Government and Opposition, Vol.59, No.1, 207-228 (SSCI) |
| Esen, Berk and Gumuscu, Sebnem (2023) "How Erdoğan's populism won again", Journal of Democracy, Vol.34, No.3, 21-32 (SSCI) |
| Aytürk, İlker and Esen, Berk (2021) "The far right, labor unions, and the working class in Turkey since the 1960s", Middle East Journal, Vol.75, No.4, 511-531 (SSCI) |
| Book |
| Esen, Berk and Gumuscu, Sebnem and Yavuzyilmaz, Hakan, Türkiye'nin yeni rejimi: rekabetçi otoriterlik, İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları, September 2023 |
| Eleştirel güvenlik ve Türkiye: uluslararası ilişkilerde alternatif yaklaşım, Esen, Berk and Baysal, Başar (eds.), İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları, October 2022 |
| "Post-post-Kemalizm: Türkiye çalışmalarında yeni arayışlar, Aytürk, İlker and Esen, Berk (eds.), İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları, August 2022 |
| Book Section / Chapter |
| Esen, Berk, "The opposition alliance in Turkey's 2023 elections", Elections and Earthquakes: Quo Vadis Turkey, Christofis, Nikos (ed.), London: Transnational Press, February 2024 |
| Esen, Berk and Yavuzyılmaz, Hakan, "Opposition coordination under a competitive authoritarian regime: the case of the 2019 local elections in Turkey", Routledge Handbook on Elections in the Middle East and North Africa, Cavatorta, Francesco and Resta, Valeria (eds.), Oxfordshire: Routledge, March 2023 |
| Esen, Berk, "Türkiye'de rekabetçi otoriter rejimin yükselişi ve düşüşü", Türkiye Siyasetinin Sınırları: Siyasal Davranış, Kurumlar ve Kültür - Ersin Kalaycıoğlu'na Armağan, Çarkoğlu, Ali and Erdoğan, Emre and Moral, Mert (eds.), İstanbul: Bilgi Universitesi Yayınları, January 2023 |
| Esen, Berk and Baysal, Basar, "Güvenlikleştirme ve demokratik gerileme ilişkisi: Türkiye örneği", Eleştirel Güvenlik ve Türkiye: Uluslararası İlişkilerde Alternatif Yaklaşım, Esen, Berk and Baysal, Basar (eds.), İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları, October 2022 |
| Esen, Berk and Baysal, Başar, "Önsöz", Eleştirel Güvenlik ve Türkiye: Uluslararası İlişkilerde Alternatif Yaklaşım, Esen, Berk and Baysal, Başar (eds.), İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları, October 2022, 7-16 |
| Aytürk, İlker and Esen, Berk, "Önsöz", Post-Post-Kemalizm: Türkiye Çalışmalarında Yeni Arayışlar, Aytürk, İlker and Esen, Berk (eds.), İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları, August 2022, 7-22 |
| Esen, Berk, "Post-Kemalizmin vesayet eleştirisi: AKP rejiminin resmî tezi", Post-Post-Kemalizm: Türkiye Çalışmalarında Yeni Arayışlar, Aytürk, İlker and Esen, Berk (eds.), İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları, August 2022, 355-416 |
| Yardımcı-Geyikçi, Şebnem and Esen, Berk, "Siyasi partiler çalışmaları kapsamında post-Kemalizmi yeniden düşünmek", Post-Post-Kemalizm: Türkiye Çalışmalarında Yeni Arayışlar, Aytürk, İlker and Esen, Berk (eds.), İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları, August 2022, 441-482 |
| Esen, Berk, "Competitive authoritarianism in Turkey under the AKP rule", The Routledge Handbook on Contemporary Turkey, Jongerden, Joost (ed.), London: Routledge, July 2021, 153-167 |
Esen, Berk, and Sebnem Gumuscu. "Why did Turkish democracy collapse? A political economy account of AKP’s authoritarianism." Party Politics (2020): 1354068820923722.
Esen, B. (2020). Praetorian Army in Action: A Critical Assessment of Civil–Military Relations in Turkey. Armed Forces & Society, 0095327X20931548.
Esen, B., & Gumuscu, S. (2019). Killing competitive authoritarianism softly: the 2019 local elections in Turkey. South European Society and Politics, 24(3), 317-342.
Esen, B., & Yardımcı-Geyikçi, Ş. (2019). An Alternative account of the populist backlash in the United States: A perspective from Turkey. PS-Political Science and Politics, 52(3), 445-450.
Esen, B., & Yardimci-Geyikçi, Ş. (2019). The Turkish presidential elections of 24 June 2018. Mediterranean Politics, 1-8.
Esen, B., & Gumuscu, S. (2018). The Perils of “Turkish Presidentialism”. Review of Middle East Studies, 52(1), 43-53.
Esen, B., & Gumuscu, S. (2018). Building a competitive authoritarian regime: State–business relations in the AKP’s Turkey. Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies, 20(4), 349-372.
Esen, B., & Gumuscu, S. (2017). Turkey: How the coup failed. Journal of Democracy, 28(1), 59-73.
Esen, B., & Gümüşçü, Ş. (2017). A small yes for presidentialism: The Turkish constitutional referendum of April 2017. South European Society and Politics, 22(3), 303-326.
Esen, B., & Gumuscu, S. (2016). Rising competitive authoritarianism in Turkey. Third World Quarterly, 37(9), 1581-1606.
Esen, B. (2014). Nation-Building, Party-Strength, and Regime Consolidation: Kemalism in Comparative Perspective. Turkish Studies, 15(4), 600-620.
Esen, B., & Ciddi, S. (2011). Turkey’s 2011 elections: An emerging dominant party system. MERIA Journal, 15(3), 19-31.