Candidate crisis in CHP ahead of acting mayor election at İzmit Municipality: They walked out of the meeting!

At İzmit Municipality, a candidate dispute erupted within the CHP ahead of the acting mayor election to be held following the arrest and suspension of Mayor Fatma Kaplan Hürriyet.

The Kocaeli Governor's Office has called the İzmit Municipal Council to a meeting on July 30 to conduct the acting mayor election. Prior to the election, CHP council members gathered at İzmit Municipality to determine the party's candidate for acting mayor.

The meeting was chaired by CHP Kocaeli Provincial Chair Erdem Arcan. It was learned that disagreements over the candidacy arose during the meeting, which was also attended by some members of the CHP İzmit District administration.

According to information obtained, Arcan read a letter from Fatma Kaplan Hürriyet during the meeting, stating that Lütfü Obuz was indicated as the candidate for acting mayor. Following Arcan's words, "This is the will," some council members reacted to the decision.

It was reported that approximately 13-14 council members walked out of the meeting, stating, "The will belongs to the council members." Thus, the candidate selection process within the CHP ended controversially without a consensus.

Following the meeting, CHP İzmit District Chair Gökhan Ercan shared an image on his social media account featuring Fatma Kaplan Hürriyet and Lütfü Obuz. In his post, Ercan stated, "Our will is united, our decision is clear! We stand by the will of President Gökhan and President Fatma. İzmit is protecting its will."

The acting mayor election is expected to take place at the İzmit Municipal Council meeting on July 30.