The ousted leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), Özgür Özel, announced today that he is preparing to establish a new political party.
Özel told Sözcü TV during a live broadcast that official steps would be taken around late July or early August. "We are working on the name and logo. Let us call it the 'New Party' for now," he said.
The announcement comes amid a widening rift within the main opposition party following Özel's removal from office following a court decision in May that found irregularities during a Nov 2023 congress where he was elected the party chair. The court reinstated former leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who took office after police stormed the party's headquarters and removed those who resisted the ruling.
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In response, Özel’s faction appealed the court's decision of "absolute nullity" to the Court of Cassation and requested an extraordinary congress in a separate application to a civil court of peace. If these processes do not concluded before the judicial recess beginning Jul 20, the group plans to accelerate their efforts for the new party.
"Of course, Jul 20 is being expected. We are also waging a legal battle," Özel said. "After that, we will talk to our elected provincial heads and proceed in a coordinated manner," he added, referring to the provincial leaders who sided with him and dismissed by the Kılıçdaroğlu administration.
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Özel explained that one group of supporters is working on establishing a new party while another group is keeping an existing party ready as an alternative. "The bylaws are being written, the program is being drafted, and the founders' board is being decided," he said.
Özel accused Kılıçdaroğlu of stalling the process despite 833 party delegates having joined him demanding a congress. "They are not holding the congress despite the signatures we delivered," he said.
Background
The internal division within the CHP traces back to the May 2023 presidential election, where Kılıçdaroğlu lost to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in what was considered the president’s most challenging race in his two-decade rule. Following the defeat, Kılıçdaroğlu faced internal opposition led by Ekrem İmamoğlu, the now-suspended mayor of İstanbul, who initiated a "change" movement within the party.
Özel, backed by İmamoğlu, won the leadership election in Nov 2023, ending Kılıçdaroğlu’s 14-year tenure. The losing faction subsequently filed multiple lawsuits, alleging that the Özel-İmamoğlu bloc purchased delegate votes with money and positions in the party.
The tension escalated when İmamoğlu, who was declared the party's presidential candidate by Özel, was detained in March last year during a large-scale corruption investigation just as he was declared his party’s presidential candidate. He has been imprisoned since then and is being tried in multiple cases, facing more than 2,000 years in prison.
The crackdown extended to other municipalities, leading to the arrest and suspension of several CHP mayors, including those of big cities like Antalya, Bursa and Adana. CHP has kept control of these municipalities as its members were elected as acting by city councils.
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The Özel-İmamoğlu bloc views these operations as an attempt by the ruling coalition to weaponize the judiciary against the CHP’s rising popular support. The ruling bloc denies the allegations, pointing out that those testifying in the corruption cases and alleging irregularities at the congress are themselves CHP members. (VK)
