Turkish Court Annuls CHP Leadership Election, Reinstates Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu As Interim Leader

A Turkish court annulled the 2023 leadership election of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), removing Özgür Özel and reinstating Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu as interim leader, in a move described by Al Jazeera as a sharp escalation against the embattled opposition.

“The ruling deprives the CHP leader Ozgur Ozil of his legitimacy and annuls the validity of the 38th Ordinary Congress held in November 2023, which saw the defeat of the historic leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu over alleged violations”

Agenzia Nova

The decision came after the 36th Civil Chamber of the Ankara Regional Court of Justice annulled CHP’s 38th Ordinary Congress held on Nov. 4–5, 2023, along with the Oct. 8, 2023 Istanbul Provincial Congress and all decisions taken at both gatherings, according to Türkiye Today.

Al Jazeera

In his first speech after reinstatement, Kılıçdaroğlu told cameras, “I promise all of you, especially party members, that we will return CHP to its founding codes,” and he urged unity within the opposition party.

The ruling also provisionally removed Özel and his administration from office and ordered the reinstatement of Kılıçdaroğlu and the former party leadership, while the CHP appealed to the Supreme Election Council (YSK) and saw the application rejected.

Al Jazeera said the court named Kılıçdaroğlu as interim leader after overturning the result of the leadership election that brought Özel to the party headship.

CHP leaders and supporters framed the ruling as an attack on democratic choice, with Al Jazeera reporting that the CHP rejected the decision as an “attempted coup” and that the government denied using courts to target political opponents.

Ali Mahir Basarir, CHP deputy parliamentary group chair, told Reuters that the ruling “is an attempted coup carried out through the judiciary [and] a blow against the will of 86 million people”.

El Mundo

Kılıçdaroğlu, speaking after reinstatement, called for calm and common sense and said he hoped Turkiye would benefit from the court’s decision, while also urging party members to avoid internal polarization and divisive rhetoric.

Türkiye Today reported that Özgür Ozel was re-elected as parliamentary group chairman with the support of 95 out of 96 lawmakers at a CHP parliamentary group meeting earlier in the day.

The same Al Jazeera account said the ruling could throw the opposition into further disarray and possible infighting, while also boosting Erdogan’s chances of extending his more than two-decade rule.

The court decision reverberated beyond party politics, with Al Jazeera reporting that Turkiye’s Borsa Istanbul .XU100 dropped 6 percent in response and that the central bank sold billions of dollars in forex to ease the fallout.

“A wind of change swept through Turkey in late March 2024, in local elections seen as a political showdown between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the main opposition party, the social-democratic CHP”

El Mundo

In Brussels, the European Union expressed concern about rule of law, and Agenzia Nova quoted a European External Action Service statement saying, “Democracy, the rule of law, and respect for fundamental rights are essential elements in the EU’s accession process.”

Agenzia Nova said the ruling used the Turkish legal term “mutlak butlan,” meaning “absolute nullity,” and voided structural changes made during Özel’s presidency until legal procedures are completed.

The same report described the controversy as unprecedented in Turkish political history, saying it stripped the CHP leader’s legitimacy, annulled the validity of the 38th Ordinary Congress held in November 2023, and reinstated Kılıçdaroğlu as general president.

El Mundo added that the court ruling caused a financial storm with the stock market plummeting 6%, and it said the Central Bank burned 6.0 billion dollars to prevent a fall in the value of the national currency.