The detention of İstanbul Metropolitan Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu early on Wednesday has sparked fierce backlash from opposition parties, who have denounced the move as an attack on democracy and a political coup against Turkey’s opposition.
Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Özgür Özel reacted sharply, calling the detention “a coup attempt against our next president”. “Using power to override the will of the people is a coup d’etat”, Özel wrote on social media. “A force is at play to prevent the people from choosing their next president. We will not surrender. In the end, the will of the people will prevail, and Turkey will win.”
İmamoğlu, a key rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and a potential presidential candidate, was taken into custody in a dawn raid at his home. The grounds for his detention remain unclear, but opposition leaders say it is part of a broader crackdown on political opponents ahead of forthcoming elections.
Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş also condemned the move, warning: “No intervention against the will of the people will go unanswered.” “Such actions harm democracy the most,” Yavaş said in a statement. “Even if the grounds for detention are unclear, what does the rushed detention of a mayor who has attended court to give a statement indicate?”
CHP İstanbul Branch Chairman Özgür Çelik, speaking to supporters on Vatan Avenue, accused the government of trying to prevent local elections scheduled for 23 March. “They are doing everything to stop the ballot boxes from being set up,” he said. “Soon, they will launch smear campaigns through their media and army of trolls. But they will not be able to tarnish İmamoğlu’s reputation.”
Former CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu also criticised the detention. “This intervention against the national will, the rule of law and democracy is unacceptable,” he said in a statement. “Those who attempt to take revenge on the Republican People’s Party have lost the trust and respect of the people.”
DEM Party: ‘A direct attack on democracy’
The pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party also strongly condemned the operation. “This is a direct attack on democracy and the will of the people,” DEM Party Co-Chair Tuncer Bakırhan said. “We reject this unlawful intervention and demand the immediate release of İmamoğlu and all those detained.”
DEM Party co-chair Tülay Hatimoğulları accused the government of “pushing societal tensions and polarisation in Turkey past the point of repair”. “This operation, which shatters faith in justice, is an attempt to reshape politics through the judiciary. What Turkey needs is not police raids at dawn, but more democracy and more rule of law,” she warned.
The DEM Party’s executive committee released a statement calling the situation “a judicial and governmental coup process targeting all political and social opposition.” The party demanded an immediate end to what it called “trusteeship and coup mentality”.
Good Party: ‘An attempted civilian coup’
Turkey’s far-right nationalist Good Party leader Müsavat Dervişoğlu also weighed in, accusing President Erdoğan of attempting to dismantle Turkey’s constitutional order. “The right to vote and be elected, freedom, democracy, law and constitutional rights have all been suspended today in Turkey,” he said in a speech in parliament. “Just as history has condemned past coup plotters, so it will condemn those behind this. Erdoğan cannot silence a nation whose anthem begins with the word ‘Do not fear’.”
Future Party: ‘A violation of democratic principles’
Future Party leader Ahmet Davutoğlu too denounced the detention, calling it “a violation of democratic principles and the rule of law”. “The detention of Istanbul’s elected mayor in such a manner is unacceptable,” Davutoğlu said in a press statement. “This action only deepens the crisis of democracy in Turkey. The government must understand that suppressing opposition figures will not bring stability but will instead fuel further political turmoil.”
DEVA Party: ‘A regime change in Turkey’
The Democracy and Progress (DEVA) Party leader Ali Babacan condemned İmamoğlu’s detention, calling it a clear attempt to suppress political opposition. “This country’s political space is being narrowed, and the message to politicians is clear: ‘I have decided to stay in power as long as my life and health permit, and no one else can have this government.’ If this is the case, then Turkey has undergone a regime change,” Babacan said.
Speaking at the parliamentary group meeting of the New Path (YY), the umbrella group of DEVA Party, Future and Felicity parties, Babacan criticised the government’s increasing authoritarianism and warned that democratic institutions were being eroded. “The judiciary is no longer independent and the rule of law is being systematically dismantled. We must resist this together,” he said.
The Turkish government has yet to provide a detailed statement on the reasons behind İmamoğlu’s detention. The move, however, has drawn widespread criticism from political opponents and civil society, further intensifying tensions ahead of the country’s local elections.
