Transfer rumors before Parliament opens: Are three more MPs joining the AKP?

Ahead of the new legislative year of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM), which will open on October 1, the issue of MP defections has returned to the agenda in Ankara's political circles. Following AKP Spokesperson Ömer Çelik's statement that there are MPs and mayors who wish to join the party, eyes have turned to potential new transfers.

According to a report by Cumhuriyet, it is claimed in political circles that two MPs from the IYI Party and one from the YENI Party could join the AKP once the new legislative term begins. If these claims materialize, the AKP's seat count in Parliament will increase, while the group balances of the IYI Party and the YENI Party will also shift.

In a statement following a meeting on September 10 where four mayors joined the AKP, Çelik had indicated that there were also requests for participation from within Parliament. This statement has heightened expectations regarding party defections in the early days of the new legislative year.

19 MPS HAVE JOINED THE AKP SINCE 2023

Since the May 14, 2023, general elections, 19 MPs elected from various parties have switched to the AKP. During this period, 10 MPs from the IYI Party, five from the Future Party (Gelecek Partisi), two from the CHP, and one each from the New Welfare Party (Yeniden Refah Partisi) and the DEVA Party have joined the AKP.

The names who moved from the IYI Party to the AKP include İdris Nebi Hatipoğlu, Kürşad Zorlu, Ahmet Ersagun Yücel, Seyithan İzsiz, Mehmet Salim Ensarioğlu, Ünal Karaman, Dursun Ataş, Ersin Beyaz, Ömer Karakaş, and Mehmet Mustafa Gürban.

Mustafa Nedim Yamalı, Serap Yazıcı Özbudun, Hasan Ekici, İsa Mesih Şahin, and Mustafa Bilici from the Future Party; Hasan Ufuk Çakır and Nimet Özdemir from the CHP; Suat Pamukçu from the New Welfare Party; and İrfan Karatutlu from the DEVA Party are among the MPs who have joined the AKP.

It is noted that Nimet Özdemir switched to the CHP after being elected from the IYI Party in the 2023 elections, and later joined the AKP. Official statements regarding the new allegations will be monitored during the opening process of Parliament.