The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) unveiled its election manifesto for the March 31 municipal elections over the weekend but the vote is proving divisive for Türkiye’s oldest party. Chairperson Özgür Özel was dismissive of resignations from the party in his speech at the party’s event in the capital Ankara on Sunday. On the other hand, he courted a party affiliated with the terrorist group PKK as the CHP fights for survival following another loss to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in last year’s general elections.

The municipal elections will be the first test for Özel, who defeated party stalwart Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu in a race for the top seat in the CHP last November. Kılıçdaroğlu’s lackluster record against the AK Party paved the way for Özel’s rise. Since then, the lawmaker, who himself suffered defeats in past municipal elections where he ran for mayor’s office in his hometown, incurred the wrath of the party’s loyal supporters for what critics call an "undemocratic" candidate-picking process.

The CHP’s election manifesto was a mix of admission of errors of party-run municipalities and a veiled opposition to the "trustee" practice in municipalities, which were run by the pro-PKK Green Left Party (YSP), informally known as the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), while it was still known as Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP). The manifesto hit out at the "expulsion of democratic institutions from decision-making mechanisms that allow citizens to have a say in administration, fueling a crisis of democracy and justice." The government in the past appointed trustees to some HDP-run municipalities concentrated in the southeast when it was found out that they funded the terrorist group.

The manifesto also contradicted the party’s opposition to the government-sponsored "urban transformation" project that aims to replace old buildings not resistant to disasters with new ones. It included a promise to implement projects for "disaster-resistant and safe cities," despite the party standing as a major hindrance to urban transformation investments, filing lawsuits in several cities against it. Lütfü Savaş, the CHP mayor of Hatay, one of the worst-hit provinces in February 2023 earthquakes in southeastern Türkiye, has faced protests for his opposition to urban transformation after the tremors devastated the city. Savaş, meanwhile, was nominated again by the CHP, though he was not formally introduced at Sunday’s event.

The event was attended by the party’s two former chairs of CHP but Özel’s predecessor Kılıçdaroğlu was absent though he was invited. Ali Gökmen, who was earlier announced to be a candidate for Esenyurt, Istanbul’s most populated district, was also absent, amid reports that the CHP would cancel his candidacy and nominate another name suggested by the YSP.

Özel and Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu, who allegedly had a hand in picking candidates, came under fire by some CHP stalwarts for the lack of transparency in the process and turning a blind eye to calls to nominate certain candidates. Özel told supporters on Sunday that "a few people pulled the party into a debate and we have those who try to take credit for what the party has done collectively," he said. Özel claimed that they listened to the "man on the street" while picking candidates.

In a televised interview on Monday, Özel said some mayors not nominated again and the "intraparty opposition" were "eagerly awaiting the outcome of the municipal elections." "They wait for April 1 and want to see CHP failing. But their waiting is in vain. Our party is determined, resilient and I trust the members. I will not step down and am not afraid of those seeking to take control of the party in case of a failure," he said. Özel said it was all "on him" if there have been errors in picking the candidates.

Last week, Gürsel Tekin, former deputy leader of the party who also served as a lawmaker, announced his resignation from the party, citing a "schism." Hours earlier, Tekin was rumored to be announced as the mayoral candidate for Istanbul’s most populated district Esenyurt for the March 31 elections. His resignation came weeks after Battal Ilgezdi, the long-serving mayor of the city’s Ataşehir, quit the party when he was not nominated again. Also last week, several party supporters staged a demonstration in front of the party’s Istanbul offices, angered at the decision not to nominate CHP mayors in the Avcılar and Sarıyer districts again.

Istanbul Mayor Imamoğlu faced the wrath of the same protesters as he unveiled candidates for the Istanbul districts on Tuesday. Protesters booed Imamoğlu, who was reportedly behind the party’s candidate picks not just for Istanbul but for other cities as well.

In a lengthy social media post after his resignation, Tekin said he was "unable to work in the current CHP." He said the CHP had turned into a party where people’s political skills were ignored and, different factions and nepotism had emerged. He said that the party members focused on fighting each other instead of fighting the government and the rights of party members not close to any faction were violated. "Instead of a spirit based on ideology, principles and thought, (the CHP) is now a place where people back each other based on their blood ties or being from the same town," he said.

CHP leaders often boasted an intraparty democracy at every level, and the party’s prominent members sought to portray their arguments as part of the criticism requisite of democracy. Yet, the latest elections where the CHP seeks to recoup its losses from last May’s general election apparently changed that. Media reports say Özel and Imamoğlu are decisive in picking their own candidates, ignoring other members’ calls. One such name is Özel’s personal lawyer, Hüseyin Can Güner, who was nominated for the CHP stronghold in Ankara, the Çankaya district. Güner’s relative, prominent CHP lawmaker Veli Ağbaba, is also nominated for the mayoral seat of the eastern province of Malatya. Imamoğlu has also reportedly played a role in the nomination of Mesut Kösedağı, who is the spokesperson of the CHP group in the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) assembly. Several incumbent mayors who were not nominated again, such as Soner Çetin of the Çukurova district in Adana and Demirhan Elçin of the northeastern province of Artvin, expressed their disappointment when they were not nominated again and quit the party.