Muharrem İnce, leader of the Homeland Party, has announced that his party will support Ekrem İmamoğlu for İstanbul mayor in the local elections scheduled for March 31, the Sözcü daily reported.
İnce’s statement came at a time when some parties that were part of an opposition bloc including the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) are ruling out alliances and planning to nominate their own candidates.
İmamoğlu, from the CHP, who ended years-long Justice and Development Party (AKP) rule in İstanbul with the support of other opposition parties in 2019, is seeking re-election.
“We will support Ekrem İmamoğlu in İstanbul,” İnce told Sözcü.
When asked what supporting İmamoğlu will bring to his party, İnce said it will help prevent the AKP from winning more municipalities and that that is the most important thing.
“There is a government who has been ruling the country poorly for the past 21 years,” İnce said, adding that his party will do whatever it takes to get rid of this government.
İnce, who was defeated by AKP leader and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the presidential election of 2018 when he ran as the CHP candidate, again stood for election as president in May.
But he withdrew from the race days before the election, which many said increased the likelihood of an election victory for Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, then CHP leader and the joint opposition candidate.
However, Kılıçdaroğlu was defeated by Erdoğan in a runoff.
The nationalist İYİ (Good) Party and a pro-Kurdish party that had supported İmamoğlu’s candidacy in the 2019 vote have said they will field their own candidates for the March local elections, claiming that alliances damage their own parties.
President Erdoğan recently announced the slogan “Yeniden İstanbul” (Once Again İstanbul), highlighting the ruling party’s focus on reclaiming the major cities it lost in 2019, especially İstanbul. Incumbent mayor İmamoğlu remains a strong contender. His election was a critical loss for the AKP, and they are keen on regaining this key city.
Polls suggest that a majority of Kurdish voters in İstanbul still favor İmamoğlu for the upcoming elections. The CHP, in its bid to retain control of the major cities won in 2019, such as Ankara and İstanbul, is preparing for an intense campaign. The party plans to select candidates based on public opinion polls and consultations with civil society and professional organizations.