On a tense September weekend in Ankara, Turkey’s political landscape was thrown into turmoil as tens of thousands of demonstrators flooded the streets, waving Turkish flags and chanting for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s resignation. Their outrage was sparked by a court case that, on September 15, 2025, could remove Ozgur Ozel—the recently elected leader of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), Turkey’s main opposition—from his post. The looming decision follows a year-long legal crackdown that has seen hundreds of CHP members, including high-profile mayors, detained on charges ranging from corruption to terrorism links.
Live footage, as reported by Reuters, captured the scale and fervor of Sunday’s protest: a sea of red and white banners, with crowds demanding not just the preservation of their party, but the future of Turkish democracy itself. The case at the heart of the controversy centers on alleged procedural irregularities during the CHP’s 2023 congress, the very meeting that propelled Ozel to party leadership. If the court invalidates the congress, Ozel could be stripped of his chairmanship, with the potential for a court-appointed trustee or the return of former chairman Kemal Kilicdaroglu—whom Erdoğan defeated in the 2023 presidential race. The court could also delay its ruling, but few expect a calm resolution.
For many, the stakes go beyond party politics. The court’s decision could reshape the CHP, rattle financial markets, and influence the timing of the general election scheduled for 2028. As political analyst Berk Esen of Sabanci University bluntly told Reuters, “If such a judicial coup against the main opposition takes place, that would be the collapse of the multi-party system in Turkey.”
The CHP, the center-left party founded by modern Turkey’s father Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, has been under relentless pressure since its sweeping victories in the 2024 local elections. Over the past year, more than 500 people—including 17 mayors—have been detained in CHP-run municipalities, swept up in corruption investigations that the party insists are politically motivated. Among those jailed is Istanbul’s popular mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, who was arrested in March 2025. His detention triggered the largest protests in a decade, with hundreds of thousands taking to the streets and a sharp selloff in the lira and other Turkish assets.
Imamoglu’s legal troubles have only intensified the crisis. On September 12, 2025, he appeared in court at Silivri high-security prison, accused of falsifying his university degree—a charge that, if proven, could land him behind bars for nearly nine years and disqualify him from future elections. A valid university degree is a constitutional requirement for office in Turkey. Imamoglu, widely seen as Erdoğan’s strongest rival, dismissed the charges as a blatant attempt to sideline him. “This indictment was not written by a prosecutor but by someone who knew they would lose the next election,” he declared, according to Shia Waves.
Just a day after Imamoglu’s court appearance, Turkish authorities escalated their crackdown. State broadcaster TRT Haber reported that prosecutors ordered the detention of 48 suspects, including Hasan Mutlu, the CHP mayor of Bayrampasa, in a sweeping corruption probe involving allegations of embezzlement, bribery, and tender rigging. Police raided 72 locations across Istanbul in the early morning hours of September 13, seizing documents and detaining suspects. Mutlu, for his part, called the investigation “a political operation based on unfounded slander.”
The government, for its part, staunchly denies any political motivation behind the judiciary’s actions. Officials insist the courts are independent and that corruption must be rooted out wherever it is found. President Erdoğan, who has led Turkey for 22 years, recently warned, “Ignoring court decisions is a blatant defiance of the rule of law. Such irresponsibility will not be tolerated.” Some in Erdoğan’s camp point to the 2024 local elections—where his Justice and Development Party (AKP) suffered its greatest defeat—as evidence that Turkish democracy remains robust, despite international and domestic criticism.
But critics, including many within the CHP and independent observers, see the legal barrage as part of a broader strategy to consolidate power. They warn that Turkey’s democratic institutions—once a source of pride in the region—are increasingly fragile. Over the past year, the courts, media, military, and even the central bank have been accused of bending to Erdoğan’s will. The recent removal of the party’s Istanbul provincial head over alleged irregularities in a separate congress vote led to a dramatic police siege of the city’s CHP headquarters, with lawmakers piling up tables and chairs to block entry. Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc has linked that controversial ruling to the upcoming Ankara decision, stoking fears that the judiciary is being used as a political weapon.
In a defiant speech at Sunday’s rally, Ozel accused the government of “undermining democratic norms and suppressing dissent” in the wake of the opposition’s local election victories. He called for a snap general election and pledged to resist any attempt to unseat him. “This case is political. The accusations are slander. Our comrades are innocent. What’s being done is a coup—a coup against the future president, against the future government. We will resist, we will resist, we will resist,” Ozel told the crowd, as reported by Reuters and K24 Digital.
Ozel’s determination is echoed by the party’s rank and file. To safeguard his position, a large majority of CHP delegates have already called for an extraordinary congress on September 21 to re-elect him if necessary. Ozel has vowed not to hand over his post in the event of an adverse court ruling and suggested that millions could be called to the streets in protest.
Perhaps the most poignant moment of the rally came when a letter from Imamoglu, read aloud from prison, electrified the crowd. “The era of ‘I’ in this country will end, and the era of ‘we’ will begin. One person will lose, and everyone else will win,” Imamoglu wrote, accusing the government of attempting to predetermine the outcome of the next election by sidelining legitimate rivals. The crowd responded with chants of “President Imamoglu,” underscoring the depth of support for the embattled mayor and the broader sense of urgency among Turkey’s opposition.
The CHP denies all allegations against it, insisting that the probes have only targeted municipalities it governs. The party’s internal divisions are also on display, with former chairman Kilicdaroglu losing support due to his silence during the crackdown and accusations—vehemently denied—of growing close to Erdoğan. Meanwhile, the Supreme Election Board, the only body constitutionally authorized to supervise party elections, has already endorsed Ozel’s chairmanship, adding another layer of legal and political complexity to the unfolding crisis.
As the court prepares to deliver its ruling, Turkey finds itself at a crossroads. The outcome could determine not just the fate of one party, but the very nature of its democracy. With tensions running high and both sides digging in, the coming days promise to be pivotal for the country’s political future.
