Cemil Tugay resigns from CHP

CHP's Mayor of İzmir Metropolitan Municipality, Cemil Tugay, announced his resignation from his party through a statement on his social media account.

In his statement, where he used the phrases "with great sadness and the hope of returning one day, I am resigning from my membership in the Republican People's Party," Tugay's resignation post is as follows:

To my esteemed fellow citizens of İzmir and the public

The "Absolute Nullity" decision to which our Republican People's Party has been subjected and the events that followed are known to everyone. I see and understand that this process has caused great damage to our party, which was founded by Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and which founded our Republic. Especially the consecutive expulsion decisions made in recent days are very worrying. Yesterday, the dismissal of our İzmir Provincial Chair along with a group of provincial chairs was a great injustice done to the political will of İzmir and an unacceptable mistake.

The reckless disregard for the political will coming from our party's members and voters is a harbinger of similar decisions to be taken in the coming days. It is not possible to see these consecutive decisions as normal or to accept them. Under these conditions, I think it is now inevitable that we face the naked truth. Of course, we all have responsibilities to ensure that our party returns to a normal democratic management environment as soon as possible. With my stance and statements to date, and by giving my signature for an extraordinary convention, I have tried to contribute to this process as much as I could.

However, I understand and see that our good-faith efforts will not yield results within the time we expected, and furthermore, many of our party members will continue to be unfairly and unlawfully targeted. I sincerely believe that our country needs a Republican People's Party that works for the rights and welfare of our people, away from all kinds of plots, tutelage, and manipulation. I will continue to be a part of this struggle throughout my life. However, the "Absolute Nullity CHP" is not the roof for this struggle.

With these convictions and thoughts, with great sadness and the hope of returning one day, I am resigning from my membership in the Republican People's Party. In the coming period, I will continue my duty as the Mayor of İzmir Metropolitan Municipality as an independent, and I will continue to serve our city and our people with all my strength.

I submit this for your information with my respects.

To my esteemed fellow citizens of İzmir and the public

The "Absolute Nullity" decision to which our Republican People's Party has been subjected and the events that followed are known to everyone. This process has caused... in our party, which was founded by Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and which founded our Republic.

— Dr. Cemil Tugay (@drcemiltugay) June 18, 2026

News Source: 12punto