Erdoğan's Istanbul concern: 'Murat Kurum' instruction to AKP members

In Istanbul, one of the cities where the outcome is most anticipated in the local elections on March 31, 2024, the race is expected to be between the AKP candidate Murat Kurum and the incumbent Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu.

AKP Chairman and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who wants to win back Istanbul, which he lost in 2019, states in all his statements that "Istanbul will attain People's Alliance governance in the local elections on March 31."

It is being discussed in AKP circles that the race between İmamoğlu and Kurum is neck-and-neck and that Erdoğan does not see the Istanbul elections as a sure thing.

According to a report by Selda Güneysu from Cumhuriyet; Erdoğan has instructed all former and current AKP executives and members of parliament, as part of his party's election campaign, that "Everyone will work for Istanbul" and "Everyone will support Murat Kurum's projects and work for Kurum."

It is also stated that Erdoğan requested his staff to "ensure that CHP-held municipalities are won at all costs and that the party accelerate all its efforts to avoid encountering an adverse result on election night."

News Source: 12punto