Türkiye’s main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), is looking to snuff out dissident voices as internal strife and leadership battles that plagued the party for years take a sour turn with public accusations.
The appointment of Özgür Özel in a tumultuous intraparty election last November that ousted former chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu was expected to usher in a period of stability, but instead, it triggered a fresh wave of conflicts in the CHP.
Power struggles, intense lobbying and factional disputes have continued to dominate the party’s internal dynamics, with increasing polar opposites emerging between Özel and Kılıçdaroğlu supporters.
Özel, who has vowed to mend the divisions in the party, initially admitted pro-Kılıçdaroğlu names to his central executive committee but the increasing rift has pushed him to do a U-turn as he fights to secure his position. His dissidents rise in number every day, despite him being credited with unprecedented wins in the municipal elections, a first in decades for the CHP.
Özel’s administration began a covert discharge campaign earlier in spring against pro-Kılıçdaroğlu members who tried to sabotage the March 31 local elections but the storm picked up this week.
Deputy Chair Eren Erdem on Tuesday submitted an angry resignation after being referred to the party’s disciplinary board for his discharge, blasting Özel’s administration, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu, known for his relentless lobbying to claim the CHP presidency, and his consultant Murat Ongun in the process.
Erdem lambasted the CHP administration for allowing the century-old party to become “a putty in the hands of mayors through communication tricks and manipulations.”
“If you allow their paid officers to discharge this party’s children, their boldness will soon turn against you and you will be unable to do any politics,” Erdem said.
“It’s clear a healthy journey is impossible with a vindictive mindset that aims to clean up the party of members opposed it at the congress through various excuses,” Erdem said.
He accused Ongun of leading a smear campaign against him with “paid anonymous accounts,” dismissing claims that he had “cursed former and current CHP chairs,” “got jobs for my friends and relatives in CHP-run municipalities” or “underhandedly supported other parties during elections.”
Warning the CHP administration, Erdem revealed Ongun’s social media users forced through online lynching Ali Mahir Başarır, a CHP lawmaker, to repent for arguing in an interview that Özel could run for president.
Insiders have also alleged Özel is looking to exclude those figures close to Kılıçdaroğlu as soon as the party concludes its congress next month, where the party will finalize its bylaws.
Deputy Chair Aylin Nazlıaka, who was recently defeated in the women’s branches congress, pulls the head of the list.
Türkiye’s oldest party founded by the republic’s first President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk will hold a symbolic ceremony on Sept. 4 in Sivas, the Turkish province where Atatürk rallied the nation for unity before the war of independence in the aftermath of World War I more than a century ago.
The “charter congress” which is to redraw a road map for the party ahead of the 2028 general elections, could however be subject to change and scaled down to a smaller workshop – a move that some see as an attempt to quell dissent.
The CHP is encouraged by the gains in the March 31 municipal elections and views the convention as the first step to winning the upcoming elections.
But the road to the government will likely be a bumpy one for the CHP, with rifts deepening among the Özel, Kılıçdaroğlu and Imamoğlu factions.
Imamoğlu’s presidential hopes were dashed by a lawsuit that seeks to ban him from politics, as well as Kılıçdaroğlu’s ambitions in last year’s general elections. He has since been building a steady supporter base – having 15 of his supporters in the 60-seat party council – to run for CHP chair and ultimately president in 2028.
He is alleged to be aiming to turn the upcoming charter congress into a council election by collecting 50+1 signatures from the delegates. Sources have claimed he even had his close friend Deputy Chair Gökhan Günaydın visit Kılıçdaroğlu to ask for support in the congress. Kılıçdaroğlu has a significant number of supporters in the congress.
The former CHP leader however has reasserted his involvement in a challenging declaration earlier this month titled: “I’m still here,” seemingly targeting both Imamoğlu and Özel.
Pundits have said he is attempting to re-enter the political arena after a not-so-graceful exit last year but he has insisted he didn’t have any personal ambitions while admitting there was a “need for change in the party’s regulations.”
