Turkey's main opposition survives court challenge amid legal crackdown
The court ruling ended months of political uncertainty over the Republican People’s Party's leadership, fueling concerns over democratic backsliding amid a broader crackdown.
ANKARA — An Ankara court on Friday dismissed a high-profile case with the potential to unseat the leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), Ozgur Ozel, ending months of uncertainty that rattled Turkey’s opposition and markets as well.
The trial began in March over allegations of vote-rigging during the CHP’s 2023 national convention, where Ozel was elected the party’s new chair. The episode unfolded amid a broader judicial crackdown on the main opposition that critics described as politically motivated and claimed was aimed at weakening the CHP after it secured the largest share of votes in 2024 local elections.
The verdict: The court ruled that the case “no longer had any ground,” Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency reported. The decision cited Ozel’s reelection on April 6 at an extraordinary CHP convention called to preempt a potential government-backed takeover of the party leadership amid the ongoing trial about the previous convention.
Prosecutors had launched the investigation in February over allegations that Ozel’s supporters had bribed delegates for their votes. The trial got underway the following month.
