Kılıçdaroğlu Moves to Expel 9 CHP Lawmakers as Court Void of Özel Vote Deepens Split
Updated
Updated · Daily Sabah · Jun 14
Kılıçdaroğlu Moves to Expel 9 CHP Lawmakers as Court Void of Özel Vote Deepens Split
1 articles · Updated · Daily Sabah · Jun 14
Summary
Nine CHP lawmakers were sent to the disciplinary board last week, and Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu is preparing more cases against provincial branch leaders as he tightens control less than a month after returning.
The purge follows a court ruling in May that nullified Özgür Özel’s election over vote-buying, restoring Kılıçdaroğlu and giving him grounds for what he calls a two-month party “cleansing” of corruption and misconduct.
Bolu Mayor Tanju Özcan quit the party after disciplinary action began, while former mayor Hasbi Dede and local leaders in Ankara and Izmir are also in line for expulsion amid corruption and sexual misconduct cases.
That crackdown is widening CHP’s internal rupture after rival camps clashed at a pro-Özel rally outside parliament, with party sources saying even senior figures such as Izmir Mayor Cemil Tugay could face action.
Özel, speaking at a rally in Lüleburgaz on Saturday, rejected the crisis as an internal feud and cast the nullification of his leadership as a government-backed effort to divide Türkiye’s main opposition party.