Erdoğan lahir di Istanbul, tetapi dibesarkan di Rize pesisir Laut Hitam dan kembali ke Istanbul pada usia sekitar 13 tahun dalam sebuah keluarga kelas menengah. Ayahnya adalah seorang pelaut yang bertugas sebagai penjaga pantai di Angkatan Laut dan berasal dari Rize. Ia belajar di sekolah agama, Sekolah Imam Hatip dan melanjutkan ke Universitas Marmara untuk belajar ekonomi dan bisnis. Erdoğan menjadi pemain sepak bola semi profesional pada usia 16 tahun, dan bekerja di perusahaan angkutan kota Istanbul. Ia terjun ke dalam politik bersama Partai Keselamatan Nasional (Milli Selâmet Partisi) yang Islamis, di bawah pimpinan Necmettin Erbakan dan kini telah dibubarkan.[butuh rujukan] Setelah kudeta militer pada 12 September 1980, ia meninggalkan sepak bola dan bekerja di sektor swasta, dan pada 1982 menjalani wajib militer sebagai seorang perwira dengan tugas khusus.
Pada 10 Agustus 2014, Turki menggelar pemilihan presiden secara langsung untuk pertama kalinya setelah 91 tahun. Selama ini, Presiden Turki dipilih oleh parlemen. Terdapat tiga calon yang maju dalam pemilihan presiden Turki 2014 ini. Perdana Menteri Turki Erdoğan turut maju dalam pilpres. Dua calon lainnya adalah Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu yang merupakan Sekretaris Jenderal Organisasi Konferensi Islam sejak 2005, dan Selahattin Demirtas yang merupakan politisi etnis Kurdi di Turki. Erdoğan terpilih menjadi Presiden Turki ke 12 hasil pemilihan presiden Turki yang digelar pada 10 Agustus 2014. Erdoğan memenangi pemilihan presiden dengan perolehan 52 persen mengalahkan dua pesaingnya.[7]. Pada 28 Agustus, Erdoğan resmi dilantik menjadi Presiden Turki ke-12. Ia dilantik di kantor kepresidenan di Ankara. Pelantikannya akan mengantarkan pada era baru di Turki karena dia diperkirakan akan mendesak dibuatnya konstitusi baru yang bisa menstransformasi negeri itu.
Pengganti Erdogan pada kursi perdana menteri adalah Menteri Luar Negeri Ahmet Davutoğlu. Para kepala negara sejumlah negara Eropa Timur, Afrika, Asia Tengah dan Timur Tengah akan menghadiri pelantikan Erdogan, termasuk Presiden Ukraina Petro Poroshenko. Politik luar negeri - Meski Turki merupakan satu dari beberapa negara Timur Tengah yang menjalin hubungan diplomatik dengan Israel, Erdogan menyatakan bahwa dia akan melawan jika Israel menyerang Libanon dan Gaza

As part of his '2023 vision' for the centenary of the Turkish Republic, Erdoğan's government oversaw accession negotiations for Turkey's membership of the European Union, an economic recovery following a financial crash in 2001, two successful constitutional referendums in 2007 and 2010, a Solution process with Kurdish militants, an allegedly Neo-Ottoman foreign policy and investments in infrastructure that included new roads, airports and a high-speed train network. With the help of Fethullah Gülen's Cemaat Movement, Erdoğan was able to curb the political power of the military through the controversial Sledgehammer and Ergenekon court cases. In late 2012, his government began peace negotiations with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) to end the ongoing PKK insurgency that began in 1978. The ceasefire broke down in 2015, leading to a renewed escalation in conflict.
As President, Erdoğan has been a strong advocate of an executive presidency that would boost his own powers and has maintained an active influence over political affairs despite the symbolic nature of his office. In 2016, he was accused of forcing the resignation of Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu due to his scepticism over the proposed presidential system, resulting in his replacement by close ally Binali Yıldırım. He has also come under fire for constructing Ak Saray, the world's largest palace on Atatürk Forest Farm and Zoo for his own use as President and has been repeatedly accused of breaching the constitutional terms of his office by not maintaining political neutrality. In 2015, amid consistent allegations that he maintained financial links with Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant militants, revelations that the state was supplying arms to militant groups in Syria in the 2014 National Intelligence Organisation lorry scandal led to accusations of high treason. Erdoğan's failed peace negotiations with Kurdish rebels and lax security policies against ISIL have been consistently blamed for the sharp rise in terrorist incidents in Turkey since 2015.
Nationwide protests against the perceived authoritarianism of Erdoğan's government began in May 2013, with the internationally criticised police crackdown resulting in 22 deaths and the stalling of EU membership negotiations. Following a split with long-time ally Fethullah Gülen, Erdoğan brought about large-scale judicial reforms that were criticised for threatening judicial independence. A US$100 billion government corruption scandal in 2013 led to the arrests of Erdoğan's close allies, with Erdoğan himself incriminated after a recording was released on social media. Erdoğan's government has since come under fire for electoral fraud, demeaning the Constitution, alleged human rights violations and crackdown on press and social media, having blocked access to Twitter, Facebook and YouTube on numerous occasions. Opposition journalists and politicians have thus branded him a "dictator".