Cracks in the intra-party democracy of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) are showing despite the fight between the dissidents and the current administration being skillfully kept hidden for a long time.
A new video by former Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu angered supporters of his successor, Özgür Özel, while finding support among loyalists of Kılıçdaroğlu, who still serves as a lawmaker in the party. In the video, Kılıçdaroğlu reiterated his call for the party to purge itself of those involved in the corruption and had a send-off for Özel, who earlier claimed Kılıçdaroğlu chose to “be a marble of the palace instead of becoming soil where flowers bloom.” He was referring to the Presidential Complex CHP seeks to deride.
CHP’s supporters accuse Kılıçdaroğlu and like-minded members of betraying the cause of the party to defeat the incumbent Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Kılıçdaroğlu was the last hope of the CHP to defeat Erdoğan in the 2023 elections but suffered a defeat despite support from other opposition parties. After the loss, his public image gradually eroded, and he became pariah-like. Özel dealt a second blow after defeating Kılıçdaroğlu in an intra-party election in November 2023, though former CHP members claim that the election was tainted by supporters of Özel, who “bought votes” for the new chair.
