Cemil Tugay, elected in 2024 for the CHP, formally joined the AK Party at a ceremony with President Erdogan, handing the ruling party a city it has never won at the ballot box.
Cemil Tugay, mayor of Izmir, formally joined President Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party on Wednesday at a ceremony in Ankara, Reuters reported. Izmir is Turkey's third-largest city and a long-time stronghold of the secular opposition. The AKP has never won the mayoralty at the ballot box.
Tugay was elected in March 2024 as a Republican People's Party candidate with 49 percent of the vote, against 37 percent for the AKP candidate. He quit the CHP in June before Wednesday's switch.
Reuters described the move as a symbolic gain for Erdogan on the western coast. It comes during a crackdown on opposition-run municipalities in which dozens of mayors have been jailed pending trial on corruption charges that the opposition says are politically motivated.
The dispatch did not quote Tugay or Erdogan directly. No court finding about Tugay was cited.
The change of party does not by itself alter the 2024 vote count. It does change which party holds the mayor's office.
People Sentiments Mixed
- The opposition says corruption cases against mayors are politically motivated.
- Reuters described the switch as a symbolic gain in a city the AKP has never won at the ballot box.