MHP dissidents now able to call for extraordinary congress

Opponents of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) chairman, Devlet Bahçeli, have reportedly collected the required number of signatures from party delegates to demand an extraordinary congress.

Dissidents led by former deputies Meral Akşener, Sinan Oğan and Koray Aydın, have collected over 300 signatures, Habertürk daily reported on Sunday. The petition will reportedly be submitted to the party administration at the start of the new year and, if Bahçeli still refuses to announce an extraordinary congress, dissidents will take the issue to court.

Shortly after the results of the Nov. 1 elections in which the MHP's vote count dropped from around 16 percent to 11.9 percent, the Ankara-based Objective Research Center (ORC) conducted a public survey on Turkey's political landscape. The survey revealed that support for the MHP has dropped to 10.5 percent as 42 percent of participants were unsatisfied with Bahçeli's leadership. Additionally, a poll conducted by MAK Consultancy asked 5,670 participants in 31 provinces who should be the next chairman of the MHP. MAK's survey revealed that 34 percent of participants prefer Akşener, followed by Bahçeli with 26 percent and Oğan with 17 percent. Amid debates over whether Akşener, whose alleged ties with the controversial Gülen Movement are cause for intense speculation in the media, will be able to take over the chairmanship position, Bahçeli now seems to be standing up to Gülenists. The chairman surprised many when he commented on the potential candidates for the MHP chairmanship.