Türkiye’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) is entering a new phase of internal struggle as reinstated Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu moves to consolidate authority following a court ruling that annulled the party’s 2023 congress, while tensions rise over possible disciplinary measures against rivals Özgür Özel and jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu.

Attention has shifted to Kılıçdaroğlu’s expected address at CHP headquarters, where he is set to return publicly for the first time since the court decision restored his leadership and overturned the congress that had brought Özel to power.

The ruling, issued under the legal doctrine of "absolute nullity,” invalidated the November 2023 congress and reinstated CHP’s pre-congress administration on an interim basis until a new congress can be organized.

The decision triggered a fierce power struggle between competing factions and culminated days later in clashes outside party headquarters after riot police removed Özel’s administration from the building.

Authorities later opened an investigation into the unrest.

While both Kılıçdaroğlu and Özel say a congress is ultimately unavoidable, disagreement over timing and legitimacy has widened the divide.

"We will hold a congress, friends. Can there be a party without a congress?” Kılıçdaroğlu said this week.

"Of course, for this to happen, the congress must be held on legal grounds.”

His remarks underscored the legal argument increasingly advanced by his supporters: that party structures remain in transition and that any leadership contest must wait until court procedures and injunction questions are resolved.

That position has strengthened Kılıçdaroğlu’s institutional standing inside the party.

The Party Council meeting expected in early June has been postponed, with CHP headquarters citing delays in formal notification procedures concerning council appointments. Kılıçdaroğlu also informed lawmakers that the parliamentary group meeting would not be convened until further notice.

The moves effectively place key party organs on hold while legal and organizational questions are reviewed.

The authority dispute now extends beyond the chairmanship itself.

Özel, who was elected parliamentary group chair by CHP lawmakers after the court ruling, maintains that his political legitimacy remains intact and continues to call for a rapid congress or a broader leadership vote involving party members.

"There is a completely unlawful decision here,” Özel said during a visit to İzmir, arguing that restrictions linked to the ruling should not prevent him from exercising political authority.

He has also rejected suggestions of a split.

"No one should leave the party, no one should resign,” Özel told supporters.

Yet Kılıçdaroğlu’s camp increasingly appears focused on institutional consolidation before any vote takes place.

Party figures aligned with Kılıçdaroğlu argue that the CHP cannot organize a credible congress under the existing delegate structure, citing court findings and ongoing investigations tied to alleged irregularities during the 2023 leadership contest.

Former CHP figure Gürsel Tekin has argued that a renewed congress process beginning with local delegate elections could take several months to complete.

Others close to Kılıçdaroğlu have spoken of the need for what they describe as a "purification” period before a new contest is held.

The debate has also revived questions over disciplinary authority.

Figures within the Kılıçdaroğlu camp have increasingly voiced calls for disciplinary scrutiny targeting individuals they hold responsible for the confrontation surrounding party headquarters and the wider crisis.

Among the names frequently mentioned are Özel and Imamoğlu, whose political alliance helped shape the 2023 leadership transition.

No formal expulsion proceedings have been announced.

However, party sources say the High Disciplinary Board, restored alongside the pre-congress administration, could become a decisive institution should disciplinary referrals emerge.

The dispute reflects deeper questions about who currently exercises legitimate authority inside the CHP.

Under party bylaws, the chair holds broad powers to represent and manage the organization, convene party bodies and oversee coordination between headquarters and the parliamentary group.

The Party Council, meanwhile, functions as the highest decision-making organ after the congress, shaping strategy, approving candidate lists and possessing the authority to call an extraordinary congress.

The Central Executive Board serves as the party’s executive arm, while disciplinary mechanisms remain separate from day-to-day administration.

That institutional architecture has turned legal interpretation into a political battleground.

Supporters of Özel insist the crisis should be resolved quickly through a fresh vote reflecting delegate or member will. Kılıçdaroğlu allies counter that rushing to a congress before legal questions are settled risks deepening instability and reproducing the same disputes that led to the court intervention.

The rivalry has increasingly spilled into internal party communications and public messaging.

Reports of heated exchanges among CHP lawmakers and separate factional coordination channels have highlighted the deteriorating atmosphere inside the party, while accusations of political pressure and influence campaigns continue to circulate between rival camps.

Both sides deny wrongdoing.

For now, the central question confronting Türkiye’s main opposition party is no longer whether a congress will take place, but under whose authority and according to which timetable.

As Kılıçdaroğlu prepares to reappear at headquarters, his camp appears to hold the stronger institutional position. Yet Özel retains support among segments of the parliamentary group and party base, setting the stage for a prolonged struggle over the CHP’s future leadership and political direction.