Ozgur Ozel, the recently deposed leader of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), announced Tuesday his intention to establish a new political party aimed at challenging President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Ozel's announcement follows a court order that removed him from his post as CHP leader. Critics contend this ruling was a politically motivated maneuver to undermine the opposition. The court's decision reinstated his unpopular predecessor, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, a move that reportedly sparked outrage among CHP supporters.
"We are establishing our new party by taking the first step together with the deputies chosen by our nation," Ozel stated in a speech to CHP lawmakers and officials. "These are the determined steps of a march toward governing Turkey."
Reports suggest the new political movement, potentially to be named Yeni Parti or New Party, is expected to formally launch later this week. Ozel indicated that many of the CHP's 135 legislators in the 600-seat parliament are anticipated to defect to the new party, which he asserted would become the parliament’s main opposition "by a wide margin."
In May, an appeals court annulled a 2023 party congress vote that appointed Ozel as CHP chair, citing alleged irregularities. Ozel had succeeded the 77-year-old Kilicdaroglu after 13 years of opposition characterized by many analysts as ineffective against Erdogan.
The 51-year-old Ozel has characterized the legal proceedings against the CHP as the latest in a series of governmental attacks. He pointed to criminal investigations across Turkey, primarily alleging corruption in CHP-run municipalities, which have resulted in the detention of hundreds of elected officials and party members.
Among those facing legal challenges is Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul, who is widely viewed as a significant potential challenger to Erdogan. Imamoglu has been imprisoned since March 2023 and is involved in multiple criminal cases that could lead to lengthy prison sentences.
The Turkish government maintains that the nation's courts are impartial and operate independently of political influence. President Erdogan, who has led Turkey for over two decades, first as prime minister and then as president, has dismissed claims of judicial interference, describing the case leading to Ozel's ouster as an internal party dispute.
Under Ozel's previous leadership, the CHP achieved a notable success in the 2024 municipal elections, securing several cities and reinforcing its control over key municipalities, including Istanbul and Ankara, which it had first won five years prior.