An unexpected mayoral bid from the wife of a pro-PKK party’s jailed former leader could spell disaster for Turkish opposition’s Republican People's Party (CHP) in the upcoming high-stakes local elections.
Başak Demirtaş, spouse of former Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) co-Chair Selahattin Demirtaş, on Sunday, told Artı Gerçek that she would consider being a candidate in Istanbul for the Green Left Party (YSP), informally known as the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) and previously going by HDP.
Saying that she hasn't received an offer from the YSP yet, Demirtaş said: "We would enter a race to win Istanbul and be ambitious, not to make some win or others lose."
Demirtaş’s move, which many agreed she wouldn’t make without agreeing with her husband first, was a surprise for many YSP executives, according to BBC Türkçe.
YSP Deputy Chair Sezai Temelli, however, welcomed Demirtaş’s potential candidacy, saying it was "unexpected" but would be "a good thing."
Another party executive claimed Selahattin Demirtaş has floated the idea of nominating their own candidates in western provinces, typically CHP strongholds. Demirtaş himself has been in prison since 2016 for spreading terrorist propaganda and having ties to the PKK, and retired from active politics last June, days after the opposition lost to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling alliance in May polls.
If the YSP doesn’t nominate a candidate in Istanbul, it may be due to the Demirtaş factor, the party executive told BBC Türkçe. "But there are stronger candidates than her in the YSP pools."
Her announcement will challenge the party in many ways, particularly this week as the YSP negotiates with the CHP on cooperating in western provinces for the local vote on March 31.
CHP Chair Özgür Özel merely called Demirtaş’s announcement "a statement of will to exercise the right of every Turkish citizen to vote and be elected." But his party will have to "do some recalculations," pundits said.
The YSP has already announced it would compete with its own candidates in eastern provinces where it has a strong showing, as well as in Istanbul, Türkiye’s largest metropolitan, complicating the odds for CHP, which currently runs the city.
The CHP has been courting YSP votes for the March vote, eager to keep its hold on the city under incumbent Ekrem Imamoğlu, who won Istanbul from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in the 2019 elections with endorsements from both the YSP and other opposition parties like the Good Party (IP).
Last month, Özel, visited YSP offices, having been rejected by its former partner IP on teaming up again. However, neither Özel nor YSP officials confirmed that they openly discussed an alliance in the local elections.
According to YSP sources, the negotiations with CHP have come to an end ahead of board meetings that will reach a conclusion by the end of this week on either allying with the CHP or competing alone.
The YSP and CHP are considering cooperating in Istanbul and some of its districts, as well as in Izmir, Adana, Mersin, Hatay, Aydın and Antalya, based on public surveys and suggestions.
However, the YSP has so far been preparing as if it will compete with its own candidates despite CHP’s olive branches like nominating low-profile candidates in some constituencies like Mersin.
In the aftermath of last May's general elections, the March 31 vote is a test of popular support for the CHP and the AK Party. It will show whether the fractured opposition can recoup in time and if the AK Party is still popular despite challenges.