As the leadership race for the top seat in the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) heats up, one potential contender appears giving up. Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu, whose success story in Türkiye’s most populated city motivated the party to reaffirm faith in a possible general elections' win, hinted he would run for the mayor’s office again next year, instead of the CHP leadership.
“I am setting out to defend Istanbul,” Imamoğlu told reporters at a news conference on Tuesday. Though political pundits long pointed out that the mayor would likely adhere to a reelection instead of leadership of the CHP, his remarks were somewhat surprising.
After all, Imamoğlu spearheaded a “change” campaign in his party that once again succumbed to defeat in May’s legislative and presidential elections. He was also caught red-handed convening with former top figures of the CHP in an online meeting to discuss ways to elect a successor to party leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu after the May losses. For many, Imamoglu was considered as a potential successor to Kılıçdaroğlu who once described him as a "son."
Imamoğlu said CHP should stop infighting and focus on the local elections scheduled for March 2024, distancing himself from calls for change in the party after Kılıçdaroğlu, heading Türkiye’s oldest party since 2010, succumbed to defeat despite support from a six-party opposition bloc.
“The fate of Istanbul and Türkiye is intertwined and my fate is sealed with Istanbul. I devoted my life to this sacred city and I see serving my 16 million compatriots here in this city as a way to serve Türkiye, to offer an alternative path for Türkiye. I have always been interested in missions, not seats,” he said at the news conference. “We were disappointed with the results in May 2023 elections but I see a transformation of my party as an important mission to change this (disappointing) course. The CHP cannot afford to lose more elections. Under the leadership of the CHP, the opposition has to win local elections together,” he said.
The mayor, who succeeded to end the long rule of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in Istanbul in the 2019 municipal elections, carved out a man of the people's image while in office. Yet, criticism mounts amid the city's chronic problems, from broken-down buses to the slow pace of infrastructure projects.
Imamoğlu said he did not “change” when he called for change. “I am where I stand after the May 28 runoff. I always said I will fight (for change),” he said. Imamoğlu added that he discussed this “change” with Kılıçdaroğlu and reiterated his support for the change though he shied away from naming who he will endorse in the process. “It can be Özgür Özel or someone else,” he said when reporters asked who he might support. Özel, the highest-ranking CHP official in Parliament now as Kılıçdaroğlu ran for the presidency in the May elections but was not nominated for legislative polls, has announced earlier this month that he was “ready” if party members support him for the leadership race.
The mayor, however, stopped short of announcing his candidacy for Istanbul’s top seat, saying that it was “a process.” Although Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and other top names implied they may support Imamoğlu in the March 2024 elections, he will still need official approval. But Kılıçdaroğlu, who ignored resignation calls after successive election losses, will likely greenlight Imamoğlu’s reelection bid to stop his thinly veiled ambition to lead the CHP.
