Leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), Özgür Özel, visited the headquarters of the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) on Monday in Ankara in a campaign for support for snap elections. The DEM had been dismissive of Özel’s bid earlier but they hosted the CHP delegation anyway.
Özel was accompanied by his three deputies at the meeting attended by the DEM Party’s co-chairs Tülay Hatimoğulları and Tuncer Bakırhan.
The CHP has been pushing for an early election since the arrest of its mayor in Istanbul on charges of corruption, though the government dismissed the calls for rescheduling of the 2028 general election. When another mayor of the CHP was arrested earlier this month, Özel hinted at his plans for another attempt at a snap vote, announcing that he would seek a meeting with Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş. He is expected to continue his meetings with party representatives later this week.
The DEM Party has so far kept itself out of a by-election debate. The party’s spokesperson, Ayşegül Doğan, said last week that it was not on their agenda, while the party’s co-chair, Tuncer Bakırhan, said they found it fair that the CHP called for a snap vote, though he underlined that they should have talked about what pushed the CHP to seek such a vote instead of the actual call.
Under the Turkish Constitution, elections are held every five years, and adjusting this schedule requires a constitutional amendment. An early election, however, can be possible if other parties agree and if Parliament undergoes a reshuffle. If the number of lawmakers falls by 5%, or 30 deputies, Parliament is obliged to call elections for those constituencies within three months. Eight seats are currently vacant in Parliament for various reasons, and media outlets reported that CHP may propose the resignation of 22 of its parliament members to widen the gap, but such resignations can only be accepted by a decision of the General Assembly. The ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), which holds a majority in Parliament, will be decisive as well.
Özel has been vocal about his calls for an early vote as a court in Ankara handles a trial questioning the legitimacy of Özel’s leadership at Türkiye’s oldest party. Özel and his associates are accused of buying votes of delegates to oust then-Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu in a 2023 intraparty election. The trial was postponed to May 6 amid media reports that the verdict will likely be an “absolute nullification” of the Özel administration.
