Leading figures in Türkiye’s main opposition party are reportedly intensifying diplomacy between rival leadership camps as internal turmoil continues to grip the organization following a contested court ruling that reinstated former leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.
The Republican People’s Party (CHP) has been split between factions aligned with Kılıçdaroğlu and ousted leader Özgür Özel since a judicial decision annulled the party’s 2023 convention and temporarily restored the former chair and his team to authority pending further legal proceedings.
According to daily Hürriyet, CHP’s Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş, Mersin Mayor Vahap Seçer and suspended Adana Mayor Zeydan Karalar have entered the mediation effort, holding initial talks with Kılıçdaroğlu.
Their involvement follows earlier efforts by senior party figures Engin Altay, Gürsel Erol and Ali Öztunç.
The emerging discussions could eventually allow lawyers — and later party representatives — to meet and address technical issues tied to the dispute, though no formal agreement has been reached, people close to the talks were quoted as saying.
“Although a consensus has not yet been reached, good-faith discussions are continuing,” said Müslim Sarı, spokesperson for the reinstated leadership aligned with Kılıçdaroğlu. “The door to dialogue is not completely closed.”
Özel, meanwhile, has long maintained that there is no room for negotiation beyond setting a date for a new convention as soon as possible, rejecting broader compromise proposals.
Attention is now focused on the party’s weekly meeting in parliament scheduled for June 9, where uncertainty remains over how both factions will navigate procedural questions, including whether Kılıçdaroğlu will be able to address the group currently led by Özel’s team.
Özel is expected to be in Manisa the same day for a memorial service for late mayor Ferdi Zeyrek, adding further uncertainty to the party’s internal coordination.
At a previous meeting on June 2, Özel sharply criticized the legal developments, describing the situation as an alliance between what he called “absolute sultan and absolute nullity,” and said the crisis could end if a new convention is held.
“If a step back is taken and a [new] convention is held, this chapter will be closed,” he said.
Kılıçdaroğlu, speaking outside party headquarters on May 30, said his priority was restoring discipline and preparing what he called a “clean and untainted congress,” while signaling a more confrontational approach.
“They ask me what I will do; I will demand accountability,” Kılıçdaroğlu said.
