Türkiye’s CHP in turmoil as Kılıçdaroğlu-Özel battle heats up

Tensions were running high on Sunday outside the headquarters of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) in Ankara as the police moved to evict the ousted leadership.

Supporters of Özgür Özel occupied the building as his predecessor, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, was preparing to take over following a court ruling that nullified Özel’s tenure.

The issue laid bare the deep divide within the party between supporters of Kılıçdaroğlu and Özel. A group of CHP lawmakers who sided with Kılıçdaroğlu attempted to enter the building in the early hours of Sunday, only to be confronted by an angry crowd. Kılıçdaroğlu was expected to move to the building, but tensions apparently prevented him, as he did not leave his residence on Sunday. Delegations representing both sides are expected to hold a meeting later during the day to resolve the issue.

Kılıçdaroğlu earlier sent an eviction notice through his lawyer to the CHP, and a group of civil servants accompanied by police arrived to deliver the notice.

On Thursday, a Turkish appeals court annulled the results of a CHP congress in 2023 in which Özel was elected, citing irregularities. A lawsuit filed by former CHP delegates and a former mayor of the party claims associates of Özel were involved in vote-buying and fraud to sway the election in favor of Özel.

The court’s ruling reverted the chairpersonship of Türkiye’s oldest party to Kılıçdaroğlu, who ran the party for more than a decade. His political demise at the CHP began after he lost a presidential election to incumbent Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and within months, he was almost persona non grata for the party, blamed for the election loss. Still, he retained considerable support within the party. This was more evident on Sunday as lawmakers pledging loyalty to Kılıçdaroğlu joined a crowd of party members marching to the headquarters, only to be confronted by a mob pelting them with plastic bottles.

Özel, now only holding the title of a lawmaker for his Manisa constituency and leader of the party’s parliamentary group, vowed to resist the ruling, though he signalled he would be open to a compromise with Kılıçdaroğlu. On Saturday, he urged the reinstated chair to call for a new party congress as soon as possible. Kılıçdaroğlu said in a statement that he was open to a new congress but did not specify when it could be held. The Özel administration is confident that they can end the crisis in the party with a new intra-party election that will install them in power again.

Mahir Polat and Müslim Sarı, two CHP lawmakers close to Kılıçdaroğlu, told journalists outside the CHP headquarters that the Özel administration did not favor a “peaceful transition.” Polat said they agreed upon holding a new congress, but “our friends, for some reason, insist on not evacuating the building.” Sarı said they pushed for “dialogue mechanisms to de-escalate tensions,” but the Özel administration did not respond yet. On a question if Kılıçdaroğlu will force his way inside in the company of riot police, Sarı said that was out of the question.

Murat Emir, a lawmaker siding with Özel, told journalists that they were open to communication with the Kılıçdaroğlu camp, but they were also ready to protect “our home.” He accused the other side of bullying them by preventing them from entering the building, claiming the crowd arriving on Sunday morning in support of Kılıçdaroğlu was actually “a mob with no links to CHP whatsoever,” echoing Özel’s earlier remarks that the pro-Kılıçdaroğlu crowd confronting them was actually “a bunch of mafioso-like people.” Emir said they also contacted the interior minister “to discuss the latest developments.”

In his first remarks to journalists after the court ruling, Kılıçdaroğlu called on CHP members to avoid divisions and protect the moral values in the face of criticism.

On Saturday, police detained 13 people under an investigation into the 2023 congress.

The Istanbul chief public prosecutor’s office said Saturday ⁠the suspects ⁠were detained across seven provinces over allegations of interference in delegates’ voting during the 2023 congress. They face charges of “violating the law on political parties,” “accepting bribes” and “laundering assets derived from crime,” the statement said. Search and seizure operations were carried out at the suspects’ addresses ⁠in the provinces of Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Şanlıurfa, Kahramanmaraş, Kilis and Malatya. Nine suspects were remanded in custody, while others were released pending judicial control.

DAILYSABAH