New Party leader Özgür Özel attends a rally in Istanbul’s Üsküdar.
Türkiye’s Innovation Party has asked the chief prosecutor’s office of the Court of Appeals to order the newly established New Party to change its name, saying the two names could cause confusion among voters.
The request was submitted to the Political Parties Registry Bureau of the office by Oya Baksı Işık, the Innovation Party’s deputy chair responsible for legal and election affairs.
The petition said the words “Yeni,” meaning “new,” and “Yenilik,” meaning “innovation” or “novelty,” have similar meanings in Turkish and could make it difficult for voters to distinguish between the parties.
The petition cited a Dec. 19, 2024, decision by the prosecutor’s office to reject an application by the Rising Türkiye Party to adopt the name New Party because of its similarity to Yenilik Party.
On July 24, Özgür Özel resigned from his post as Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader, breaking away with 90 fellow lawmakers to establish the New Party.
His departure came two months after an Ankara court annulled the CHP’s 2023 leadership election over alleged irregularities, removing Özel as chair and reinstating former leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.
The emergent main opposition party will hold its district leadership primaries on Sept. 26, while provincial votes would take place on Oct. 17-18.
