Another deputy resigns from İYİ Party

New resignations are being added to the resignations in the İYİ Party folllowing the May 14 and 28 elections. 

Most recently, İstanbul Deputy Ayşe Sibel Yanıkömeroğlu announced her resignation from the party yesterday (December6).

Yanıkömeroğlu, in a statement on her social media account, expressed the following:

"I have resigned from my membership in the İYİ Party, of which I am a founding board member. I am saddened by the deviation from our founding purpose and principles for some time. I will continue my work prioritizing the interests of my country in the future as I have done until today."

With Yanıkömeroğlu's resignation, the number of seats of the İYİ Party in the Parliament has decreased to 40.

Resignations in İYİ Party

Aytun Çıray, 27th Term İzmir Deputy and Chief Advisor to the Party Chairperson, along with İYİ Party General Board Member Emine Küçükali and former State Minister and 27th Term İstanbul Deputy Ahat Andican announced on June 6 that they resigned from the party.

Following this, Taylan Yıldız, one of the founders of the İYİ Party and also a member of the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality Council, announced on June 19 that he resigned from the party.

Former Central Bank Governor and 27th Term Ankara Deputy Durmuş Yılmaz and General Board Member Bahadır Erdem resigned from the party on November 10.

On November 2, 28th Term (on duty) Eskişehir Deputy İdris Nebi Hatipoğlu resigned from the İYİ Party and joined the Justice and Development Party (AKP) on November 7. Ankara Deputy Adnan Beker of the 28th Term also announced his resignation from the party on November 16.

Journalist İsmail Saymaz wrote that İYİ Party Sakarya Deputy Ümit Dikbayır was accused of examining Meral Akşener's bank accounts and engaging in commercial relations with municipalities. Subsequently, Dikbayır submitted a petition to the İYİ Party's Parliamentary Group and Disciplinary Committee for the investigation of the allegations. As a result, Dikbayır was expelled from the party.

Background

The İYİ Party participated in the presidential and parliamentary elections on May 14 and in the second round of the presidential election held on May 28 in the Nation Alliance made up of six opposition parties against the People's Alliance, established in February 2018 between the ruling AKP and the formerly opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).

İYİ Party Chairperson Meral Akşener initially opposed the candidacy of the Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairperson Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu in the presidential elections, but later supported it.

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Following the elections on May 14, the People's Alliance secured a majority in the Parliament. In the second round for the Presidency held on May 28, AKP Chairperson Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was re-elected, garnering 52% of the votes in his race with Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.

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İYİ Party was established on 25 October 2017. The party was formed as a result in a split by prominent former members of MHP and later joined by some former members of the main opposition CHP. The party's founder and chairperson, Meral Akşener, and its deputy chairperson, Koray Aydın, are both former members of the MHP before establishing the party. Plans to form a new party emerged amongst prominent MHP defectors after the MHP's support for a 'Yes' vote in the controversial 2017 constitutional referendum, as a result of which Turkey's government system was changed to a Presidential government system, as well as a failed attempt to unseat MHP's governing leader Devlet Bahçeli. 

Shortly after its formation, İYİ Party  gained five MPs in the Parliament who were originally elected for other parties. 

On 22 April 2018, in the run-up to general elections, a further 15 MPs from the CHP moved to the İYİ Party following a joint agreement between the two parties. This was to allow the İYİ Party to form a parliamentary group that would be eligible to field a presidential candidate without the need to collect signatures and compete independently. Meral Akşener ran as the party's 2018 presidential candidate and she received 7,29 % of the votes. (HA/PE)