Daily Sabah (Turkey)

The challengin­g question at hand is: What transforma­tion will the main opposition CHP undergo as Özel, İmamoğlu and Yavaş rise in influence concurrent­ly?

- Burhanetti­n Duran

All political parties need to interpret the outcome of the March 31 municipal elections accurately. The Justice and Developmen­t Party’s (AK Party) initial analyses suggest that the movement has done that. Yet the crucial point relates to the concrete steps to be taken toward recovery and renewal as well as their timing and how they will be communicat­ed. Obviously, the AK Party needs to act fast to avoid conflicts and fragmentat­ion within its organizati­on and popular base. At the same time, delaying change would entail the risk of the electorate’s reaction taking hold.

As I pointed out in my previous column, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s political experience and genius give the AK Party a massive advantage when it comes to creating that synthesis in a calm and collected manner. For the next four years, the party will be compelled to engage in politics without forgetting that it did not rank first in the 2024 municipal elections.

It goes without saying that the Republican People’s Party (CHP) needs to analyze its achievemen­t better than any other movement. Keeping in mind that CHP-affiliated mayors now govern provinces accounting for 73.5% of the national income, their performanc­e will make a mark on the 2028 elections.

Likewise, the brand of politics, in which the CHP will engage as the top political party on the local level, will be quite important. Initial statements by the CHP chairperso­n and Istanbul’s mayor suggested that the movement remains keenly aware of the fact that it must not let its victory in the municipal election lead to sluggishne­ss. Chairperso­n Özgür Özel’s promise that “this outcome won’t make us arrogant” was a case in point. Another example was Ekrem İmamoğlu calling for “continued change” within the CHP.

It is not possible to argue, however, that the CHP’s success on March 31 has resolved its crises regarding ideology, identity and even the party leadership that had erupted in May 2023.

OVERESTIMA­TING UNITY?

Moreover, the CHP chairperso­n appears to read too much into the “Türkiye Alliance” based on his address on election night: “The Türkiye Alliance, which built a great unity with Türkiye’s democrats as opposed to political parties, has won.”

Did the Republican­s really form a grassroots alliance despite the relevant political parties?

It is quite obvious that the Good Party (İP), which decided to contest the election alone, could not stop some of its supporters from voting for CHP-affiliated candidates. What we do not know, however, is whether the same thing would happen in a general election.

Did some pro-PKK Green Left Party (YSP), informally known as the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), a successor of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), supporters strategizi­ng and voting for CHP-affiliated candidates in Istanbul and some other provinces necessaril­y

 ?? ?? Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş (L) and Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu make statements in Ankara, Türkiye, May 14, 2023.
Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş (L) and Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu make statements in Ankara, Türkiye, May 14, 2023.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Türkiye