YENİ Party has determined its candidate for the deputy presidency election to be held at the Union of Municipalities of Turkey (TBB) on Thursday, October 15. Eskişehir Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ayşe Ünlüce has become the YENİ Party's candidate in the election.
YENİ Party Eskişehir Provincial Chair Talat Yalaz announced Ünlüce's candidacy in a statement. In his statement, Yalaz said:
"In the Union of Municipalities of Turkey Deputy Presidency election to be held tomorrow, our YENİ Party candidate is our Eskişehir Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ayşe Ünlüce. We wish our Metropolitan Mayor Ayşe Ünlüce success in strengthening solidarity among local governments, producing joint solutions to the common problems of our municipalities, and ensuring that the Union of Municipalities of Turkey continues its work with an understanding of equal service to all municipalities. We will continue to grow solidarity with a democratic, participatory, and egalitarian understanding of local government."
PEOPLE'S ALLIANCE CANDIDATE TAHİR BÜYÜKAKIN
The People's Alliance has also nominated Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Tahir Büyükakın for the TBB deputy presidency election.
TBB Assembly members will cast their votes in the election to be held in Ankara on Thursday, October 15.
PARTY MEMBER DISTRIBUTION IN THE TBB ASSEMBLY
According to the provided member distribution, in the 821-member TBB Assembly, the AKP has 304 members, the CHP has 261, the YENİ Party has 131, the MHP has 57, the DEM Party has 56, the New Welfare Party (Yeniden Refah Partisi) has 9, and the İYİ Party has 3 members.
Calculated based on this distribution, the total number of members for the AKP and MHP reaches 361. The total number of members for the CHP and YENİ Party is stated as 392. If these two parties act together and the 56 members of the DEM Party also provide support, the total number rises to 448.
The stance the parties will take in the election and the votes of the assembly members will be influential in determining the deputy president.
WHAT HAPPENED?
The presidency process at the Union of Municipalities of Turkey changed following the arrest of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu on March 23, 2025. Upon İmamoğlu's removal from office, Adana Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Zeydan Karalar was elected deputy president in the election held on March 28, 2025.
Following Karalar's arrest, Mersin Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Vahap Seçer was brought to the deputy presidency by receiving 446 votes in the election held on July 16, 2025.
Seçer was then elected Union President at the TBB Ordinary Assembly Meeting held on May 2, 2026. However, after Seçer's arrest on October 6, 2026, and his removal from office by the Ministry of Interior, it was decided to hold a new deputy presidency election at the TBB.
In the election to be held on October 15, YENİ Party candidate Ayşe Ünlüce and People's Alliance candidate Tahir Büyükakın will compete.
News Source: 12punto
