Türkiye’s governing alliance pays no attention to the opposition and prepares for next year’s local elections. The resulting political void is filled by a showdown between and within the opposition alliance’s members. As new details about past negotiations and disappointments surface in the media, the opposition continues to bleed internally.
The opposition seems unable to recover from its most recent election defeat. If anything, the ongoing crisis gives way to destruction. Having formed a "grand coalition" before the May 2023 elections, the "table for six" parties find it difficult to even analyze why they lost.
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the Republican People’s Party (CHP) chairperson whom the opposition holds responsible for their defeat in May 2023 elections, has been fighting for survival in the face of mounting criticism. Trying to keep his seat, the 74-year-old politician presses all the buttons at once – as he had on the campaign trail. He likens CHP to a ship and insists that his job as its captain is to take it to "the port" safely. He also counters the increasingly rampant discourse of change with an emphasis on renewal.
The CHP chairperson holds the upper hand because he controls the majority of party delegates. Accordingly, he can get reelected comfortably and handpick mayoral candidates. Yet, the leaked Zoom meeting suggests that Kılıçdaroğlu must sack a large number of CHP executives. By contrast, Imamoğlu needs to step into the arena.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told the ruling Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) provincial leaders Thursday that his movement wanted to capture opposition-held municipalities, starting with Istanbul and Ankara, in the March 2024 local elections.