Of course, the despots of Turkey are our closest allies in the Mideast aside from the theocratic fascists of Israel. From the NY Times: Turkey Bars Politician From Election:
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s most popular politician, the leader of an Islamic-oriented party, was barred Friday from running in November elections.
The High Electoral Board ruled that Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the head of the Justice and Development Party, cannot run on Nov. 3 because he was convicted of reading a poem that the court said incited religious hatred.