Özgür Özel, leader of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), has announced that the party will hold an extraordinary congress on Apr 6. The move comes amid concerns that the party leadership could be removed through legal action.
“We are declaring to the whole country that by calling an extraordinary congress, we are preventing any trustee attempts,” Özel said during a press conference held today at İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality.
The concern over possible state intervention in the CHP stems from an investigation into the party’s Nov 2023 congress, where Özel assumed its leadership. On Feb 10, the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office launched an iinvestigation into allegations that delegates were offered money, mobile phones, and housing in exchange for votes in favor of Özel. The investigation is expected to hear testimony from party officials involved in the congress.
One week before the investigation was made public, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had described the congress as “tainted.”
Today, Rasim Ozan Kütahyalı, a pro-government pundit, claimed in an interview with the Ensonhaber news portal that the congress would be annulled due to procedural violations and that a trustee would be temporarily appointed to the party. He suggested that a new congress would eventually hand control of the CHP to figures close to former party leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu in what he called as part of "a project of the state.”
In the 2023 congress, Özel ended Kılıçdaroğlu’s 14-year tenure. His victory followed "change" campaign spearheaded by İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, after Kılıçdaroğlu’s loss to Erdoğan in the presidential election that year.
On Mar 19, İmamoğlu was detained along with nearly 100 municipal officials as part of investigations into alleged corruption and terrorism-related offenses. He had been expected to run unopposed in the CHP’s presidential primary scheduled for Mar 23, with a formal nomination anticipated afterward.
“The prosecutor’s office is conducting a covert investigation in İstanbul aimed at disrupting the CHP and preventing it from naming a presidential candidate,” Özel said. “They’ve done everything they can to block the primary. Finally, just four days before the vote, they detained Mr. İmamoğlu. The goal is to halt the campaign and stop the primary from taking place.”
He added that the primary would still be held as planned.
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Since İmamoğlu’s detention, CHP leaders have been based at the municipality building in İstanbul’s Fatih district, while mass protests have continued for three days in nearby Saraçhane Square. Crowds have swelled, particularly in the evenings. Speaking to demonstrators on Thursday, Özel declared, “We will no longer do politics in conference halls but in the streets.”
Government officials have criticized the statement as irresponsible and provocative, insisting that legal defense should take place “in court, not on the streets.”
İmamoğlu, who remains in custody, has issued messages via his lawyers. In a post shared on social media, he referred to Saraçhane as “the people's house” and “İstanbul’s democracy square.”
İmamoğlu’s detention: CHP leader vows to 'bring politics to streets' as demonstrations grow
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