Pre-election backroom activity heats up: Two more candidates to challenge İmamoğlu and Kurum in Istanbul!

Turkey will head to the polls for local elections on March 31, 2024. Istanbul is at the top of the list of cities where the local elections are most anticipated.

The AKP has fielded Murat Kurum against Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu in an effort to reclaim the megacity it lost in 2019. While the race was expected to be between these two candidates, it has been suggested that two more parties will field candidates in Istanbul.

According to a report from Gazete Duvar, the candidates fielded by parties that could potentially draw votes from the AKP, and the campaigns they conduct, carry special significance. In this regard, new moves are expected from two parties that were part of the Nation Alliance in the last general election.

EMPHASIS ON THE '3RD WAY'

The Felicity Party (Saadet Partisi), which received 103 thousand votes by fielding a candidate in Istanbul in the 2019 local elections, plans to run a more ambitious candidate and a strong campaign in this election. Referring to the ‘3rd way’ expression frequently used in recent months, party members say, “We will be that 3rd way.” The Felicity Party's Istanbul candidate is planned to be announced at the end of this month.

Democrat Party members, who state that they have the potential to draw votes from the AKP base, are also making their final preparations to field a candidate in Istanbul.

Regarding the election process, the following warning is being made within the Democrat Party: “The first round of the 2019 elections was won by 13 thousand votes. The Democrat Party had received 22 thousand votes. We believe that fielding a candidate in Istanbul in the upcoming election will contribute to İmamoğlu. Therefore, parties within the opposition should be more respectful toward one another.”

News Source: 12punto