Victory statement from CHP Chairman Özgür Özel: He was moved to tears...

Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairman Özgür Özel made a statement at the party headquarters after his party emerged as the leading party in the March 31 Local Elections.

Özel was moved to tears during his statement.

Highlights from Özel's statement are as follows:

"THERE IS NO LOSER IN THESE ELECTIONS"

"I would like to thank the CHP organization. The election results have shown that the voters have decided to establish a new political landscape in Turkey.

Today, the voters decided to change the 22-year-old picture of Turkey. In the second century of the Republic, they decided to balance the disproportionate power of the government from the local level.

The Turkey Alliance has achieved a historic result. It also gave an important message about how our country should be governed. The Turkey Alliance has made a historic decision. Our voters have given a clear message, and as we interpret it, this message is as follows: we want the lost status of the rule of law to be restored; our differences are our wealth.

As citizens of the Republic of Turkey, we want unity and solidarity. We see this message given by our nation as a sacred trust. I want it to be known that there is no loser in these elections."

"OUR MAYORS DESERVE APPRECIATION"

"Our people have rewarded good service and punished bad service and bad intentions. I would like to specifically thank our mayors of Istanbul, Ankara, Mersin, Adana, and Antalya, whom the CHP took over from the AKP in 2019. Even without the support of the central government, and despite their obstruction, they are the chief architects of today's victory through their contribution to establishing the perception that the CHP governs cleanly and honestly, without making excuses. Furthermore, our mayors who were already in office and whom we did not lose in the last election deserve special appreciation for carrying the banner during the most difficult days."

"WE OWE A LOT TO MR. KILIÇDAROĞLU AND HIS DELEGATES"

"Our cities have been entrusted to safe hands, and mayors who will manage the living spaces of our people for the people have been elected. It must be stated that they have approved the change our party has undergone and wanted it for their own cities as well. After the great sadness we experienced last May, we owe a lot to Mr. Kılıçdaroğlu and his delegates, who showed that there is a party in Turkey where the chairman can be changed through elections at the CHP congress, following the great emotional disconnect our voters experienced."

ALLIANCE STATEMENT

"Although no alliance was formed with any political party in these elections, the power of the CHP and the Turkey Alliance, which the conscience of the voters established at the ballot box, has further expanded the success of 2019. I would like to state that we do not see these results as a victory that will lead us to complacency, but rather as a credit opened to us by the voters. We are aware that this support, which comes from all voter groups and fundamentally changes the flow of Turkish politics, places a great responsibility on our party. The CHP is now the party of all democrats; it is also the party where nationalist, conservative, and Kurdish democrats can vote together at the same time. We do not interpret this as 'we have made these voters CHP members'; we consider this a duty assigned to us and we hold this trust in high regard."

NUMBER OF MUNICIPALITIES IN ISTANBUL REACHED 26

"According to the data we have and the data supported by all sources, we have regained Adana, Ankara, Antalya, Aydın, Eskişehir, Mersin, Muğla, Tekirdağ, İzmir, and Istanbul. We have won the metropolitan municipalities of Balıkesir, Bursa, Manisa, and Denizli. A neck-and-neck race continues in Kırklareli, Hatay, and Çorum. While we have maintained all 14 of our district municipalities in Istanbul, we have added 12 more to this so far. The race is fiercely continuing for the 2 districts that our Provincial Chairman pledged to win."