Hakan Şimşek becomes the new mayor of Şehzadeler

Following the passing of Şehzadeler Mayor Gülşah Durbay, the Şehzadeler Municipal Council convened in an extraordinary session to elect a new mayor at the Manisa Culture Center MetropolitanMunicipal Council Hall.The other parties in the council,the AK Party, MHP, IYI Party, and one independentmember, participated. In the process that followed the passing of theŞehzadeler Mayor, they had stated that theyhad decided not to field a candidate.

At the meeting, which began with a roll call, Acting Mayor Zerrin İşnel announced that the political parties in the council would not field candidatesand would support the CHP's candidate,announcement. upon which voices of reactionagainst İşnel rose from the AK Partybenches. Stating that theywould not field a candidate onbehalf of the AK Party,theyannounced that the CHP'sshowedthat they would vote for the candidate, they did not declareanywhere that they would, and upon the request for a correction, Zerrin İşnel made a correction and thankedand stated that the CHP's mayoralcandidate was Hakan Şimşekannounced.

PARTYIDENDID NOT ABIDE BY THE GROUP DECISION

After the CHP announced that its candidate was Hakan Şimşek,YenalYıldırım, a CHP Council Member who had previously served as Deputy Mayor of Şehzadeler Municipality before resigning,also chose not to follow the decision made by the CHP group,stating, "I am not someone who acts based on the words of others" I am not bound by the name that will emerge. I am Yenal Yıldırım and I am a candidate," he said, declaring his candidacy for mayor. He announced. Following the acceptance of Yenal Yıldırım's candidacy, the process moved to a two-candidate mayoral race.

In the election where two candidates competed,Council members cast their votes in alphabeticalorderaccordingly.At the end of theelection, Hakan Şimşek received 20 votes and Yenal Yıldırım received 7 votes, while 4 votes weredeemed invalid.The council Since thetwo-thirds majority of thetotal number of members could not be reached,the election proceeded to the second round.Following a 15-minute break, the second round of voting resulted in 23 out of 31 members voting for Hakan Şimşek, while 7 member Yenal Yıldırım while1 vote was cast blank andwith Hakan Şimşek receiving a two-thirdsmajority of the council's votes, he became the new Mayor of Şehzadeler.

The council consists of 18 members from the CHP, 5 from the AK Party, 4 from the MHP, and 3 from the İYİ Party, while 1 memberserved as an independent.

Followingthe election,council members speaking on behalf of the parties represented in the council spoke about Gülşah Durbay.while offering condolences, and wished the new mayor Hakan Şimşek success in hisduties.

"GÜLŞWE WILLPROTECT THE LEGACY OF OUR MAYORAND UPHOLD ITSECOND ROUND"

In his speech, the new Mayor of Şehzadeler, Hakan Şimşek, said, "In 2025, we went through a very difficult period. This perDuring the process, we lost our pressconsultant Güney Temiz, our brother,followed by our MetropolitanMayor Ferdi Zeyrek, and subsequently, Manisa's 'Heel-Clicking Efe' (Topuklu Efe), our Şehzadeler Mayor Gülşah Durbay. For us,it was a very difficult time.for us is a truly great lossand it has been like a trauma. They will always be with us in our hearts. The sorrow that losing these friends has caused us is not something that can be described in words. I am struggling even while making this speech. Our Mayor Gülşah, while trying to undergo treatment on one hand, was on the other hand thinking about what she could do for the Şehzadeler district.Shea friend who prioritizesthe public's well-being above their ownhealth, and we willstand behind everypromise made by our friendduring and after theelection process. We willto fulfill all our promises and commitments, together with all our fellow council membershand in hand, with a social democratic, people-orientedmunicipal leadership, all of thesewill be fully realwe will realizeit. These processes are a bit painful. This is atrust for us. We will protect this trust together with all our party members, all our council members, and our entire organization.It isalso a very heavy responsibility for me. Without alienatinganyone, we will continueto manage this city in the best possible waytogether with all ourcouncil members, regardless of party affiliation," he said.

HAKAN ŞİWHO ISHE?

Born in Manisa in 1971, he is married and has 1 a father ofchildren, Hakan Şimşek is a graduate of Manisa Celal Bayar University Faculty of Economicsand has been working as a certified public accountantregistered with the Manisa Chamber of Certified Public Accountants for nearly 30 years.Hehas been practicing as an accountant. In the 2024 local government electionselected from the CHP to the Şehzadeler Municipal Council, Hakan Şimşek was appointed Deputy Mayor of Şehzadeler in May 2024 and resigned from hisposition in January2025.

News Source: 12punto