Four months into office, Özgür Özel’s pledge of "change" finds a new meaning for the main opposition, the Republican People’s Party (CHP). The politician who defeated longstanding leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu in the November 2023 chairperson election of Türkiye’s oldest party has had his reputation dented by scandals and intra-party fighting.
Özel’s motto, "change," for the better for the party that suffered consecutive defeats to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) pitted him against "old school" members of the CHP.
His pledge of change offered the opposition electorate a new path for the party, adhering more to the founding values of the party. But he proved he was not very different than his successor when it came to courting a party known for its links to the PKK terrorist group in a bid to boost the CHP votes. Özel also faces flak for what his dissidents claim is a power struggle against Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu. Imamoğlu, who gave the CHP a much-needed victory in municipal elections by winning the longstanding AK Party stronghold in the 2019 elections, is viewed as the "secret" chair of the party. He made the headlines before Özel’s elections when the records of a meeting he held with other CHP figures for mounting a campaign against Kılıçdaroğlu leaked to the media. Critics say that although he does not have an administrative role in the party, Imamoğlu had a hand in picking candidates for upcoming municipal elections.
Özel first drew the ire of CHP supporters merely six days into office when he scrapped an intraparty referendum for a new charter. Then came his notorious remarks that intraparty election for candidates was "not always a correct method." This was a harbinger of what awaited the loyal electorate of the party that long boasted an intraparty democracy where even the harshest criticism among members was tolerated, and local branches of the party were asked about their opinions of mayoral candidates.
About two weeks into office, Özel made the headlines again after he accompanied a lawmaker of the pro-PKK Green Left Party (YSP), informally known as the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), a successor of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), to the concert of a singer known for her anti-Turkish sentiment. Özel, kissing the hand of singer Pervin Chakar, further escalated criticism of his tenure, supposed to be a time for severing ties with the pro-PKK party.
Another controversial move came on Dec. 13. Right after attending the funeral of a Turkish soldier killed by the PKK terrorists, Özel paid a visit to the YSP to negotiate an alliance in upcoming municipal elections.
On Dec. 24, Özel’s CHP proved it would deviate from the opposition’s united stance against PKK terrorism when the party refused to sign a joint declaration of the ruling and opposition parties at Parliament against terrorism following the killings of 12 soldiers by PKK in northern Iraq. Özel continued negotiations with the YSP as he warmly welcomed the party’s representatives at a meeting on Jan. 11. After the meeting, Özel announced that they would object to the practice of appointment of trustees to municipalities whose mayors were suspended from office for their support to the PKK. He reiterated this stance as he unveiled his party’s election manifesto on Feb. 18.
Although the CHP did not formally announce an alliance with YSP, the latter did not field candidates in 22 districts of Istanbul while nominating a candidate for the seat of Imamoğlu. The CHP, in return, nominated YSP members in several districts of Istanbul for municipal assembly seats.
Özel’s other decisions over candidate picking also stoked tensions, such as nominating his personal lawyer, Hüseyin Can Güner, for the mayoral seat of Çankaya, a district of Ankara that has long been a CHP stronghold. The nomination of Güner, also a relative of CHP lawmaker Veli Ağbaba, stirred up a debate over perceived nepotism within the party. Another crisis erupted when he tried to withdraw the candidacy of Hatay Mayor Lütfü Savaş. Savaş has faced protests in the southern city, which was devastated by the February 2023 earthquakes, for its poor handling of the disaster. When Savaş announced that he might run independently, Özel retracted his opposition and decided to nominate him again.