Mustafa Nedim Yamalı, an MP for Ankara and one of the founders of the opposition Future Party (GP), has resigned from the party amid rumors that all lawmakers from the GP as well as those from the Islamist opposition Felicity Party (SP) may join the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Yamalı issued a brief statement on X about parting ways with the GP on Tuesday, expressing gratitude for the support of GP leader and former prime minister Ahmet Davutoğlu during his tenure.
He served as an Ankara lawmaker in the parliamentary group founded by the SP, which aligned with the GP in the 2023 elections, where the AKP secured 268 seats in the parliament.
The opposition’s Nation Alliance, a bloc of six political parties that nominated candidates from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and its nationalist ally, the İYİ (Good) Party, was able to secure 212 seats in parliament in total, with 169 of them belonging to the CHP and 43 to İYİ.
The parliamentary candidates from the SP, GP and other parties within the alliance were included on the CHP’s list.
Despite adding names from four different parties, the CHP’s vote share only increased by just under 3 percentage points, rising from 22.6 percent in the 2018 elections to 25.3 percent in 2023, which has been a subject of criticism.
Journalist Deniz Zeyrek on Tuesday reported in a column for the Nefes daily that rumors were circulating that all lawmakers from the SP and the GP may join the ruling AKP, with Davutoğlu himself, a former AKP heavyweight, sending mixed signals on the matter.
If these rumors turn out to be true, part of the votes given to the main opposition CHP in the 2023 elections will effectively be transferred to the AKP.
According to a report by the pro-government Yeni Şafak newspaper, Yamalı, who resigned from the AKP in 2019 along with Davutoğlu, will officially join the AKP during tomorrow’s group meeting.
Yamalı’s resignation causes the SP to lose its right to form a parliamentary group, as its seats now fall below the 20 required. Having a parliamentary group allows small parties to secure offices in parliament and hold weekly briefings to present their policies.