Turkey's main opposition party CHP gets new leader after Kilicdaroglu defeat

(Patria) - Turkey's main opposition party got a new leader on Sunday, after Kemal Kilicdaroglu's electoral defeat in May to incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The secular Republican People's Party (CHP) was divided after that defeat. At the party's annual congress, delegates voted to replace Kilicdaroglu with the relatively unknown Ozgur Ozel (49). Kilicdaroglu lost the leadership position after two rounds of party voting to a candidate backed by Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.

Ozel spent much of his career working as a private pharmacist in Izmir. He became head of the Turkish Pharmacists' Association and was elected to parliament in 2011. Ozel, who speaks German, won the party vote by a margin of 812-536, after promoting himself as a candidate for "change," AFP reported.

Kilicdaroglu compared attempts to oust him to a "stab in the back." Ozel responded that he wants to "write a new story and reshape Turkish politics." The CHP congress came as the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) prepares for March municipal elections.

Erdogan has prided himself on never losing a national election and keeping the parliaments of Turkey's most important cities under control. But his invincibility ended in the 2019 elections, when the opposition won in Istanbul and Ankara for the first time during Erdogan's rule.

Since his re-election to a final five-year term, Erdogan has focused on reclaiming both cities. Analysts believe Erdogan's chances are greatest in Istanbul, the city where the Turkish leader grew up and began his political career as mayor.

Mayor Imamoglu became a darling of the opposition after winning a repeat election against Erdogan's ally in 2019. But since then he has lost some popularity and currently faces the threat of courts banning him from politics. He was convicted of insulting a public official and could be forced to resign if the verdict is upheld.