HDP Co-Chair: We Declared Mobilization in İstanbul for AKP to Lose

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Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chair Pervin Buldan has spoken in İstanbul ahead of the June 23 election rerun, saying, "We declared mobilization in İstanbul. AKP's (Justice and Development Party) loss means the win of justice and peace. Every single vote is very valuable. One vote sets fascism back."

Buldan accused the government of "staging a coup against the will of the people," referring to the Supreme Election Council (YSK) verdicts in the southeastern provinces, where six of the HDP's winning candidates were stripped of mandates because they were previously discharged from public posts due to statutory decrees.

"Of course, Turkey faced a YSK coup. Through the YSK coup, our six municipalities, including the Bağlar Municipality in Diyarbakır, were seized.

"The same seizure happened not just in the region, but also in İstanbul. They staged a coup in İstanbul and they stole İstanbul.

"The AKP's loss means the win of peace and justice. The win of democracy... The win of Diyarbakır, Cizre, the Aegean, the Black Sea, and the whole country... İstanbul means Şırnak, Muş, Bitlis, Dersim, Van, Hakkari, Iğdır for us. The gain here is a gain in Turkey, in Kurdistan.

"They say 'Kurdistan' to gain a single vote"

"[The gain in İstanbul] is the gain of Turkey, of the Kurdish people. We are approaching the June 23 elections. Every single vote is very valuable. One vote changes Turkey. Every single vote we cast in the İstanbul elections has a great significance and importance. One vote sets back the fascism.

"What do they do? They say 'Kurdistan,' to gain a single vote. They go to Diyarbakır and speak in Kurdish.

"This is why we declared mobilization. We are all here until June 23. Our MPs, Central Executive Committee members, party assembly members, all my colleagues, we are doing a landing in İstanbul.

"Just for the AKP to lose, forces of democracy to win. We will win with the AKP's lose. This is not a matter of Binali Yıldırım and Ekrem İmamoğlu. This issue is beyond a race between the two rivals." (AS/VK)