Republican People’s Party (CHP) Chairperson Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu spoke for the first time after it was revealed that Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu was apparently conspiring with fellow members of the CHP to overthrow him. The leader of the Turkish main opposition party played down the conspiracy but labeled the leaked video of the meeting as "unethical."

An online video meeting between İmamoğlu and prominent names of the CHP, who served as deputies of CHP leader Kılıçdaroğlu in the past, surfaced earlier this week. The leaked video, where participants discussed how to organize an extraordinary congress for an election for the top seat of the CHP, laid bared the discontent in the party after the party once again succumbed to defeat against the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

In a televised interview on Thursday, Kılıçdaroğlu, who has chaired the main opposition party since 2010, said he became aware of the meeting when someone sent him a text message about it. "I did not watch it in its entirety. It is unnecessary to watch it all," Kılıçdaroğlu, who was elected as CHP chair after another "leaked" video forced his predecessor Deniz Baykal to step down.

"In the end, it is a meeting of friends who labored for this party. It was partly disturbing, ethically speaking. It was not normal," he said. Kılıçdaroğlu said there will be no "consequences" for people who participated in the meeting, ruling out disciplinary action and expulsion.

Kılıçdaroğlu said anyone can be nominated to head the CHP. "They can form groups or speak at meetings of our party. But it should be ethical," Kılıçdaroğlu underlined.

The CHP leader was criticized by some opposition supporters when he was first nominated against Erdoğan in May’s presidential election and eventually received overwhelming support from the six-party opposition alliance. Yet, it led to his latest loss against Erdoğan and the AK Party, which have won all general elections since 2002. Calls for Kılıçdaroğlu's resignation escalated following his loss to Erdoğan in a May 28 runoff. The opposition, which has refused to admit defeat in past elections citing "irregularities," almost unanimously accepted it, while Kılıçdaroğlu’s supporters increasingly turned their backs on the politician, nearly at the same level of support they showed toward him.

Kılıçdaroğlu, however, has ignored calls to step down. In Thursday’s interview, he said party chairs can "be replaced" but added, "I am the captain of this ship and the captain does not abandon it in stormy seas." He said he would only leave the ship at the "port" and that "port" was the party’s election. "The party assembly will decide its schedule, but I want it to be held before municipal elections (in 2024)."

The CHP leader also insisted that the May elections were not "a defeat" for the CHP but acknowledged that they made a mistake by failing to drum up support in less populated places where the CHP garnered lesser votes than the AK Party. "But we won in most big cities," he said, pointing out the parliamentary elections where the CHP won a large number of seats in big cities like Istanbul and the capital Ankara.

İmamoğlu, whose popularity skyrocketed when he won the municipal election in 2019, a first for the CHP in Türkiye’s most populated city in decades, was among the foremost names in the party to voice a need for "change" in the CHP. Although opponents of Kılıçdaroğlu underline the need for a total transformation of the party and its changed mindset after Kılıçdaroğlu came to power, the debate ultimately boils down to the need to replace the leader. The likelihood of an end to his rule increases day by day as the party prepares to hold an electoral congress in the coming months.

The video of İmamoğlu, which made waves on social media after anonymous users released it, was apparently recorded on Sunday, as the mayor starts his conversation with others by saying, "Have a good Sunday." Most of the video concentrates on conversations over how to cultivate support from local CHP delegates in several Turkish provinces. At one point, İmamoğlu speaks about "an alternative extraordinary congress process" and refers to his earlier conversation with others on how it can be "materialized." Other speakers in the video also talk about preparing a petition for a call to convene a congress. They point out the party’s charter for an election to replace Kılıçdaroğlu and discuss how he might respond if their petition gains momentum and ultimately pave the way for an extraordinary election.

Participants of the leaked meeting include former deputy chairs and CHP lawmakers Gökhan Günaydın, Onursal Adıgüzel, Tekin Bingöl, Engin Altay, Muharrem Erkek and Bülent Tezcan. Participants say Selin Sayek Böke, another prominent figure in the party, was unable to attend due to an engagement. All names were viewed as being from the inner circle of Kılıçdaroğlu. Dissidents accuse Kılıçdaroğlu of forcing out "old school" members of the party more loyal to the secular, traditional social democrat ideology of the early years of the party. The names attending a meeting with İmamoğlu appear to represent a new opposition within the opposition as Kılıçdaroğlu represents an all-embracing new mindset of the party, which inevitably alienated some voters. Kılıçdaroğlu has tried a balancing act by extending an olive branch to different segments of the society before the elections but ultimately, found himself under fire for his support for the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), which is known for its affiliation with the PKK terrorist group.

İmamoğlu on Wednesday commented on the leak while he downplayed the "secrecy" of the meeting. "It is party matters and naturally, I discuss them with members of my party," the mayor told inquiring reporters on the sidelines of an event in Istanbul. "I attended similar meetings, maybe some 200 such meetings since the elections and more will be held. I even plan to attend such a meeting today. They are no secrets but I will not discuss what we discussed at the meetings now in front of (reporters)," he said. İmamoğlu's only concern was the leak. "We will investigate it. We will ascertain if it is someone from the party or not," he said.