Acting mayor of Beykoz resigns from CHP amid turmoil

ISTANBUL

The acting mayor of Istanbul’s Beykoz district, Özlem Vural Gürzel, resigned from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) on Sept. 9.

"The baseless accusations, slander and psychological pressure have now exceeded my tolerance limit," Gürzel said in a post on X, adding that she could no longer serve under the CHP.

She said she had instead received support from municipal council members of ruling bloc partners Justice and Development Party (AKP) and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).

Gürzel was elected deputy mayor on March 10, following the arrest of CHP's Beykoz Mayor Alaattin Köseler.

Köseler is on trial on charges of "rigging a tender" and "forming, joining and aiding a criminal organization." In the council vote to replace him, 31 members cast ballots, with Gürzel securing 18.

Her resignation triggered further departures, as council members Murat Uzun and Uğur Gökdemir also quit the CHP.

Their exit came days after Köseler and 12 others were released on Sept. 4, only to be rearrested two days later after prosecutors appealed the decision. Köseler’s private secretary, Veli Gümüş, was also detained.

Meanwhile, the CHP faces a widening corruption probe in the southern city of Antalya, where Mayor Muhittin Böcek remains in custody over alleged bribery.

Twenty more people including business figures, municipal staff and former executives were detained in the fifth wave of operations on Sept. 10. A trustee was also appointed to the Antalya-based private broadcaster Kanal V.

The turmoil has deepened a parallel row over the party’s Istanbul leadership. Tensions flared at the party's provincial headquarters on Sept. 8 when supporters protested against the arrival of Gürsel Tekin, a former lawmaker appointed as interim provincial chair by court order.

It came after the CHP’s Istanbul leadership was suspended over alleged irregularities in its 2023 congress. Tekin entered the building under police escort to loud boos.

At a Sept. 10 event at party headquarters, CHP leader Özgür Özel said an extraordinary provincial congress on Sept. 24 would "resolve the knot in Istanbul."

The CHP also scheduled an extraordinary convention for Sept. 21 amid an ongoing legal battle challenging the legitimacy of the vote that elected Özel as party leader.