İzmir Mayor Soyer says ‘thinks differently’ from İmamoğlu on change within CHP
İzmir Mayor Tunç Soyer, from the main opposition CHP, has stated that he “thinks differently” from Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu on the change within the party.
Duvar English
Main opposition Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) İzmir Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Tunç Soyer has stated that he does not share the same opinion with Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu on the change within their party.
Speaking about their last meeting held on July 4, Soyer said “I declared a statement called ‘The İzmir Stance’ (on change within the party). İmamoğlu also declared a statement. We came together to clarify what is really on our minds.”
“I listened to him more during the meeting. I wanted to listen to him. There is no hesitation about what we are doing, but there are many things that I don't think are understood about what he has in mind. In the meeting, I mostly listened to him and tried to understand him. I'm not going to talk about these for a long time. I clearly stated that I think differently, and we also expressed this in the declarations,” Soyer told local broadcaster Ege’de SonSözTV.
CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu lost the presidential election against Recep Tayyip Erdoğan by receiving 47.82 percent of the votes in the second round of the race on May 28.
Moreover, the CHP received 25.41 percent of the votes in the May 14 parliamentary elections, falling short of expectations, ending up having 169 seats in the parliament out of 600 while leaving the majority to the ruling alliance. 39 deputies out of 169 were from other alliance parties.
The election losses raised the voices for the need for change for CHP leadership and party structure, but Kılıçdaroğlu has not shown any willingness in this regard.
On June 25, Soyer told Halk TV that Kılıçdaroğlu should stay as CHP leader until the 2024 local elections.
Last week, İmamoğlu launched a website emphasizing the need for “change” within the opposition and asking people to make suggestions in this regard. The text on the website read that it is no longer possible for the opposition to “behave as if nothing happened and to insist on former mistakes.”