Özgür Özel Abandons CHP and Creates “New Party”, 91 Lawmakers Follow Him

Özgür Özel, the opposition leader in Turkey, has broken away from the Republican People’s Party (CHP) following a court decision that expelled him from its ranks, and announced the creation of a new political entity called “Yeni Parti” (“New Party”).

Sources close to Özel say that 91 deputies have left the CHP to join the founding committee of the new formation, making it the largest group in the Turkish Parliament.

A source close to him reports that Özgür Özel has signed the founding documents of the New Party, thus formalizing his resignation from the Republican People’s Party.

This move deals a powerful blow to the CHP, the social democratic party with historical roots founded by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, which now numbers around 40 representatives in the legislature.

Özel, who took the helm of the CHP in November 2023, was forced to leave his post after a court decision in May, paving the way for the return of former chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu to the party’s leadership.

In his reaction to the situation, Özel described the government’s action as a political strategy to undermine the opposition and to clear an easy path for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) towards the 2028 parliamentary elections.

“The AKP admits that it can no longer win a democratic electoral process. It knows well that the Turkish people no longer support this government,” Özel stressed.

The creation of the “New Party” is expected to profoundly reshape the political balance in Turkey, as the country approaches a new phase of tensions on the eve of the next elections.