Court adjourns CHP convention case to September
ANKARA
An Ankara court has adjourned a case seeking the annulment of the 2023 convention of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) until Sept. 8.
The lawsuit challenges the validity of the convention that brought current leader Özgür Özel to power, claiming “absolute nullity.” At the June 30 hearing in Ankara, plaintiffs reiterated the argument that the convention's election process was compromised by the partial conduct of the board chair.
If the court rules in favor of the claim, it could pave the way for the return of former CHP head Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu or trigger a court-appointed trustee to oversee the party.
In a post on X following the court’s decision, Özel described the lawsuit as "a political operation that is not result-oriented, but process-oriented."
It is aimed at "making our party debate itself, interrupting our march to power and breaking our determination to fight,” he wrote, urging supporters to attend a rally in Istanbul’s Saraçhane Square on July 1.
Last week, a delegation including Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş visited Kılıçdaroğlu to ask him to declare he will not reassume leadership if the court invalidates the convention.
Kılıçdaroğlu reportedly refused, citing fears that a leadership vacuum could lead to court intervention in party affairs, according to broadcaster Halk TV.
“No one who was not elected at the convention can govern the CHP,” Özel said in a recent interview with Cumhuriyet daily. “It would be a historical mistake to accept a position after [a decision of] absolute nullity."
Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, the party's jailed presidential candidate for the next elections, also expressed opposition to Kılıçdaroğlu’s stance.
"I am faced with a great sense of betrayal," İmamoğlu told Halk TV. "I will never accept these words. It has hurt me deeply, I feel indescribably bad."
