We began 2021 in the fervent hope that it would not be a repeat of 2020. Since March 2020 we have all seen our lives change utterly. The new year brings hope that the vaccines developed to fight the virus will protect us and allow a return to the modes of life we once knew.

Still, it seems that a return to the old life will not happen rapidly, and some habits will have to change permanently. At MetroPOLL, we are working to track how public views of these changes and possibly permanent transformations have developed, and how Turkey experienced this process.

First of all, we can report breakages in the mindstates defined for voters by party identity. In other words, on some issues and problems, society is finding common ground independently of party loyalties. Of course one of the fundamental drivers of this process is the economic problems felt by almost everyone.

In general, we see the development of a more pragmatic approach from voters. A large majority share a desire to see Turkey become a country where welfare standards and levels are high, where democracy and basic rights are protected, and a country that is productive and strong. This desire is founded in a perception of the chasm between where Turkey is, and where it should be. In foreign policy, there is widespread agreement that the country should seek to become a place that follows its own interests, but maintains friendly and peaceful relations with different players from the European Union and USA, to Russia and China.

Voters see these goals requiring social compromise and solidarity. And the view of leaders is evolving away from unconditional emotional fandom to a more pragmatic understanding of service.

Turkey is changing internally and leaving behind the habits and frameworks of the past. It seems possible that in 10 years time we will see an entirely new Turkey. The Coronavirus is serving as a catalyst accelerating this transformation.

In hopes that the transformation will produce a story of success, and that 2021 is the first chapter...

The January Turkey's Pulse survey was carried out using the stratified sampling and weighting method on 1,575 people in 28 provinces based on the 26 regions of Turkey's NUTS 2 system between January 17 - 21. The survey used CATI (computer-assisted telephone interviewing) methodology with a margin error of 2.47 percent at the 95 percent level of confidence.