The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) succumbed to infighting after yet another loss in the May elections. With calls growing for the resignation of its leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, it will be a hot September for Türkiye’s oldest political party. On Sept. 16, provincial congresses will be launched in 81 provinces to elect new local representatives for the party. The process, which will continue until Oct. 15, will escalate a secret battle between supporters of Kılıçdaroğlu and his rivals within the party.
Local representatives are critical for intra-party elections, and Kılıçdaroğlu is reportedly worried over waning support for his tenure. Several prominent members of the party, including Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, earlier announced their “readiness” to helm the party though they later backtracked amid political maneuvering in the party.
The CHP held its own elections on the “neighborhood” level immediately after Kılıçdaroğlu lost the presidential race to incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in a May 28 runoff. Kılıçdaroğlu, who also lost his seat in Parliament in the May 14 legislative polls, found himself amid a debate over “change,” a word used by dissidents calling him to leave the top post he was elected to 13 years ago. Currently, the party holds district congresses to elect local representatives or delegates.
Kılıçdaroğlu recently summoned senior figures of the party in the capital Ankara and the big cities of Istanbul and Izmir for a meeting ahead of the congresses, seeking their support. He came under fire for suspending several heads of the CHP’s local branches across the country when they revealed their support for “change.”
The CHP chair will have to rely on support from Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir, which have the highest number of representatives of the 81 provinces. Izmir has traditionally been a CHP stronghold, while the party managed to win the 2019 elections in Istanbul and Ankara after years of election victories by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party).
Currently, Kılıçdaroğlu has no contender against his rule, but the party’s parliamentary group chair, Özgür Özel, is anticipated to announce his candidacy later this week. Özel earlier hinted that he was ready to “accept any job so that the party would not suffer any more losses.”
