Four municipal council members in Istanbul’s Üsküdar district resigned from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and joined the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) on Friday, a day before the council is due to elect a new acting mayor.
Ahmet Başbaydar, Ayhan Aydın, Hüseyin Kazan and Tahsin Usta formally joined the AK Party at a ceremony held at the party’s Üsküdar district headquarters, according to the AK Party’s Istanbul provincial organization.
The defections narrowed the balance in the Üsküdar Municipal Council to 23 CHP members and 21 members of the People’s Alliance ahead of Saturday’s vote.
Speaking on behalf of the four council members, Usta said they had decided to switch parties because they believed they could better serve Üsküdar under the AK Party.
“We resigned from the Republican People’s Party and joined the AK Party to provide greater service to the people of Üsküdar,” Usta said, acknowledging that the decision had been difficult.
