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This research seeks to contribute to our understanding of therole played by civilian leaders in the consolidation of democracyexamining changes in levels of military influence over politics inTurkey. It departs from typical military-centric civil-militaryrelations literature by employing a civilian-centric analysis. Itadopts a framework that focuses on the incentive structure ofcivilian leaders as determined by competitive elections; thepolitical capacity of leaders as reflected in their parliamentarymajority, political experience and the effectiveness of theireconomic policies; and institutional rules, such as the system ofgovernment and organization of the parties. The study argues that,depending on their incentive structure and political capacity, thecivilian leaders will either challenge a politically powerfulmilitary or ally with that military by adopting its preferencestructures. The relevance of this model for understandingcivil-military relations in the aftermath of the transition todemocracy in mid-1980s is explored in the Turkish case by examiningthe periods of Prime Minister/President Turgut Özal and PrimeMinister Tansu €iller.

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