Opposition wins local elections in Turkey

It is a bitter day for Turkish President Erdogan: his AKP lost significantly in the local elections – especially in the metropolises. The opposition party CHP provides the mayors there – including in Istanbul.

Unbridled cheers from the CHP: Istanbul’s mayor Ekrem Imamoglu defended his office. According to preliminary results, he is clearly ahead of his challenger Murat Kurum from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s AKP. He was heavily involved in the election campaign for the AKP candidate.

His defeat is also an announcement from the voters to Erdogan, says the chairman of the CHP, Özgür Özel: “In these elections, our citizens not only voted on their mayors, but also on how this country should be governed. Our people have sent a clear message to those who reduced his income, trampled on democracy and destroyed the rule of law: We want our country to regain its rule of law.”

Among other things, the CHP won the country’s five largest cities, including Bursa. The CHP also took over Adiyaman, which was badly affected by the earthquake, from the AKP. But the big winner at the CHP is the mayor of Istanbul, Imamoglu. In the evening he confidently says “We won the election!”

Erdogan admits defeat

Even if it was only local elections: the result can change Turkey, says political scientist Suat Özcelebi in an interview with ARD radio studio Istanbul. And Imamoglu will have a further role to play through his re-election: “The Turkish people have said ‘Stop’ to the government. These results will lead to politics being restructured, there will be new political leaders. In particular, we will name Ekrem Imamoglu from now on in connection with the 2028 presidential election.”

Nationwide, however, the AKP is almost on a par with the CHP. The AKP remains the strongest force, especially in central Anatolia and in some provinces on the Black Sea. Party leader Erdogan admits defeat in a speech that night. He speaks of 85 million people in Turkey and democracy as the winner. The message from the voters has been received: “Unfortunately, we did not achieve the result we wanted in these local elections. We will honestly evaluate this in our party’s committees and courageously exercise self-criticism. We will investigate the reasons for this regression and draw conclusions. “

Kurdish party DEM wins in the east

In the east, the Kurdish-influenced DEM party has won in many provinces, for example in Mardin, Diyarbakir, Batman and Van. In the past, however, mayors from the DEM predecessor party HDP have been removed by the central government and replaced by officials loyal to the government.

According to the national returning officer, the election went smoothly overall. Voter turnout nationwide was around 75 percent. However, in eastern Turkey there were violent clashes surrounding the election of local mayors. Two people were killed and more than 40 were injured.