Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and former Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu engaged in a sharp exchange on X, with Erdoğan accusing Kılıçdaroğlu of undermining Turkey’s stability and Kılıçdaroğlu reiterating his claim that Erdoğan is corrupt, referring to him as a “thief.”

The online spat comes as Kılıçdaroğlu faces mounting legal troubles, including a criminal trial and a defamation lawsuit, over allegations that he insulted Erdoğan by calling him the “chief thief.”

The former opposition leader, who lost both Turkey’s May 2023 presidential election and the subsequent CHP leadership race, doubled down on his accusations in his tweets, further escalating tensions in the country’s polarized political environment.

Geçtiğimiz hafta CHP’nin devrik genel başkanının mahkeme salonunda savurduğu hakaretler, Türkiye’nin 14-28 Mayıs seçimlerinde nasıl büyük bir uçurumun eşiğinden döndüğünü bir kez daha ortaya koymuştur.…

— Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (@RTErdogan) November 29, 2024

In his tweet Erdoğan criticized Kılıçdaroğlu’s recent remarks in court, describing them as “insults hurled in the courtroom” that reflect a pattern of divisive politics. Erdoğan accused Kılıçdaroğlu of using “toxic language” and pursuing a political style marked by “betrayal and sabotage.” He also claimed that Kılıçdaroğlu’s leadership of the CHP had harmed Turkey’s economy and reputation.

“These insults once again reveal how Turkey narrowly escaped a major crisis during the elections on May 14–28,” Erdoğan tweeted, referencing the presidential and parliamentary elections in 2023. He argued that Kılıçdaroğlu, driven by “the frustration of losing the election and the party congress,” was lashing out indiscriminately with baseless accusations against both Erdoğan’s ruling People’s Alliance and his former allies within the opposition.

Erdoğan also leveled criticism at the broader CHP leadership, accusing both Kılıçdaroğlu and his successor, Özgür Özel, of mismanagement in municipalities controlled by the party. Highlighting issues like traffic congestion, a lack of earthquake preparedness and alleged corruption, Erdoğan claimed, “Turkey has neither the time nor the energy to waste on them.”

Kılıçdaroğlu’s response

Kılıçdaroğlu, in a fiery reply, accused Erdoğan of avoiding accountability and deflected criticism back toward the president. He called Erdoğan out for his silence on questions about his wealth, quoting Erdoğan’s own past statement: “If you ever hear that Tayyip Erdoğan has become very wealthy, know that he has eaten forbidden gains!”

Bak Erdoğan, şaibeli bir seçimle Cumhurbaşkanı seçildiğini söylemiyorsun.
Sorduklarıma cevap veremiyorsun,
iki gündür lafı evirip çevirip bir şeyler geveliyorsun.
Sen ne dersen de!
Ben hırsıza hırsız derim.
Bak, senin cümleni yazıyorum ve sana tekrar soruyorum:
"Eğer bir gün… https://t.co/6D0pItYoyI

— Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu (@kilicdarogluk) November 29, 2024

“So, have you become rich? Have you taken what’s forbidden?” Kılıçdaroğlu tweeted, repeating his accusation of corruption and declaring, “I call a thief a thief.”

The exchange between the two leaders offers a snapshot of a defining feature of Turkish politics over the past decade. Kılıçdaroğlu has consistently accused Erdoğan of authoritarianism and corruption, while Erdoğan has portrayed Kılıçdaroğlu as an ineffective leader whose divisive rhetoric harms the country.

Kılıçdaroğlu is currently on trial for allegedly insulting Erdoğan by calling him a “thief” in speeches and public statements dating back to Turkey’s 2013 corruption probes. Those investigations implicated senior government officials and Erdoğan’s inner circle in bribery, money laundering and other offenses. Erdoğan dismissed the probes as a judicial coup orchestrated by the Gülen movement, a faith-based group he later accused of attempting to overthrow the government during a coup attempt in 2016.

Last week, during his courtroom defense, Kılıçdaroğlu repeated his allegations, accusing Erdoğan of amassing wealth through corruption. His remarks led Erdoğan’s legal team to file a separate defamation lawsuit seeking 500,000 Turkish lira (approximately $14,500) in damages.

The lawsuits are part of a broader pattern in Erdoğan’s presidency, during which thousands of defamation cases, both criminal and civil, have been filed against critics under laws prohibiting insults of the president. Human rights groups and international observers have expressed concern about the use of these laws to silence dissent and stifle political opposition in Turkey.

Kılıçdaroğlu’s allegations and Erdoğan’s legal actions are playing out in the aftermath of Turkey’s closely watched May 2023 general election. Erdoğan, who has been in power for over two decades, narrowly defeated Kılıçdaroğlu in a runoff to secure another term as president. The election was marred by accusations of government bias, media suppression and the use of state resources to bolster Erdoğan’s campaign.

Kılıçdaroğlu, who led a six-party opposition coalition known as the Nation Alliance, promised to restore parliamentary democracy, address economic instabilit, and promote accountability. However, his defeat exposed divisions within the opposition, and he stepped down as CHP leader after losing the party’s leadership race to Özel in November.

Erdoğan, meanwhile, has used his electoral victory to consolidate power and push his vision of the “Century of Turkey,” emphasizing economic growth, military strength and national sovereignty. However, critics argue that Erdoğan’s increasingly centralized rule has eroded democratic institutions and limited political freedoms as well as emptying the state coffers and leading to economic hardship for millions of Turks.