Turkey’s main opposition party has claimed big election victories in the main cities of Istanbul and Ankara.
The results are a significant blow for Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who had hoped to regain control of the cities less than a year after he claimed a third term as president.
But Ekrem Imamoglu, who first won the city in 2019, scored a second victory for the secular opposition CHP.
Mr Erdogan had vowed a new era in Turkey’s megacity of almost 16 million people, but the incumbent mayor of Istanbul was on course to win more than 50% of the vote, over 11 points ahead of the president’s AK Party candidate.
This was also the first time since Mr Erdogan came to power 21 years ago that his party was defeated across the country at the ballot box.
This is definitely a huge improvement in the face of the last year’s general election. It goes to show that even if people still didn’t believe in a proper alternative to Erdoğan as a president, they are fed up with his party AKP’s governing in their cities and towns.
More than 20 out of 81 provinces/states in Turkey changed hands this time, both in governors and city councils.
The main opposition party, secular and founding party of modern Turkey, CHP, has finally seen a very sharp rise in local governing popularity after not being able to win some cities for more than 50 years. It didn’t lose any major city government or councils to right-wing AKP or other parties, although it lost a few smaller ones due to uncommon events, like electing to continue with the same controversial governor in earthquake stricken Hatay.
Another notable thing is that the Kurdish party has consolidated its local government in the mostly-Kurdish populated east provinces of the country. This has been the trend in the last few elections after AKP’s popularity faded in the region, but Erdoğan decided to use his emergency powers he gained after 2016’s controversial coup attempt to appoint his own party’s nominees as governors instead. This election sees the elected Kurdish governors gaining their seats back.
One last notable thing to talk about how YRP, a rather more conservative, shariah law touting party, is growing in AKP-heavy central provinces. They had gained a few seats in the parliament last year, after forming a coalition with AKP.
As the article says, 2 local governors of the major cities, Ekrem İmamoğlu in Istanbul and Mansur Yavaş in the capital city Ankara, have won the elections once again in landslide vote differences (~10 and ~28 respectively). They both are and have been the main opposition CHP’s candidates these last 2 local elections, and are seen as the primary candidates for the next presidential election in 2028, with the political atmosphere being unable to generate any popular candidates in AKP due to the shadow of Erdoğan looming heavy.
Good news, hope the Turks get that idiot out of the office.
Hopefully the beginng of the end for Erdogan.
Bütün Türkiye’nin adına çok ama çok sevindim.
I am so very happy for my Turkish friends, the whole country, and myself :) Let’s hope this is the light at the end of the tunnel.
I am now hoping the country will become a more secular country, respecting human rights, women’s rights and childrens rights
Indeed. Yay!
