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Local elections Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...
in
Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
took place throughout the country's 81
provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...
on 31 March 2024. A total of 30 metropolitan and 1,363 district municipal mayors, alongside 1,282 provincial and 21,001 municipal councilors were elected, in addition to numerous local non-partisan positions such as neighborhood representatives ( muhtars) and elderly people's councils. The elections took place ten months after the 2023 parliamentary and presidential elections, where the Nation Alliance opposition coalition suffered an unexpected landslide defeat to President
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...
's governing People's Alliance. This was despite an ongoing economic crisis and rapidly rising inflation. Following the defeat, the opposition six-party coalition dissolved, with the main opposition parties
Republican People's Party The Republican People's Party (RPP; , CHP ) is a Kemalism, Kemalist and Social democracy, social democratic political party in Turkey. It is the oldest List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, founded by Mustafa Kemal ...
(CHP) and
Good Party The Good Party (Turkish language, Turkish: ''İYİ Parti'') is a Turkish nationalism, nationalist, Kemalism, Kemalist and Conservatism, conservative List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, established on 25 October 2017 b ...
(İYİ) fielding separate candidates for effectively all mayoral positions. This was the first nationwide election to be contested by the CHP's new leader
Özgür Özel Özgür Özel () (born 21 September 1974) is a Turkish pharmacist and politician who has served as Leader of the Republican People's Party, leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) since 2023. He had previously shared the parliamentary group ...
, who had successfully challenged his predecessor Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu for the position in November 2023. The
Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party The Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (; , abbreviated as DEM Party) is a pro- Kurdish political party in Turkey. It is the legal successor of the Green Left Party and with the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) handing over its work to this ...
(DEM), which succeeded the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) as Turkey's principal Kurdish minority rights party, fielded its own candidates in many western metropoles, despite having previously withdrawn candidates in favor of the Nation Alliance. The results were described as a "spectacular upset" victory for the opposition CHP, which despite the lack of any electoral pacts managed to retain all but one of its metropolitan mayoralties, while winning four more. In particular, the party's candidates in Turkey's largest city
Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
and capital
Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...
, Ekrem İmamoğlu and
Mansur Yavaş Mansur Yavaş (; born 23 May 1955) is a Turkish lawyer and politician who is currently the Mayor of Ankara, holding the office since April 2019. He was elected in the 2019 Ankara mayoral election as the candidate of the Nation Alliance (Turkey), ...
, were re-elected by 51% and 60%, respectively. Both mayors also won majorities in their respective metropolitan councils, giving them significantly more powers than their previous terms, and are now seen as potential presidential contenders for the next Turkish presidential election. The CHP also won many unexpected victories in areas that had been under government control for the previous two decades, including
Bursa Bursa () is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the Marmara Region, Bursa is one of the industrial centers of the country. Most of ...
,
Balıkesir Balıkesir () is a city in the Marmara Region, Marmara region of Turkey. It is the seat of Balıkesir Province, which is also a Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality. As of 2022, the population of Balıkesir Province ...
,
Manisa Manisa () is a city in Turkey's Aegean Region and the administrative seat of Manisa Province, lying approximately 40 km northeast of the major city of İzmir. The city forms the urban part of the districts Şehzadeler and Yunusemre, with ...
,
Kütahya Kütahya (; historically, Cotyaeum or Kotyaion; Ancient Greek, Greek: Κοτύαιον) is a city in western Turkey which lies on the Porsuk River, at 969 metres above sea level. It is the seat of Kütahya Province and Kütahya District. In 19 ...
, Adıyaman,
Amasya Amasya () is a city in northern Turkey, in the Black Sea Region. It was called Amaseia or Amasia in antiquity."Amasya" in ''Encyclopædia Britannica, The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol ...
,
Kırıkkale Kırıkkale is a city in the Central Anatolia Region, Turkey, Central Anatolia region of Turkey. It is the seat of Kırıkkale Province and Kırıkkale District.Kilis Kilis is a city in southernmost Turkey, near the Syria–Turkey border, border with Syria, and the administrative centre of Kilis Province and Kilis District. Its population is 112,187 (2022). On 6 February 2023 Kilis was badly affected by the tw ...
and
Denizli Denizli is a city in Aegean Region, Aegean Turkey, and seat of the province of Denizli Province, Denizli. The city forms the urban part of the districts Merkezefendi and Pamukkale, Denizli, Pamukkale, with a population of 691 783 in 2024. Denizl ...
. The party also managed to win swathes of districts within many provinces, many of which delivered vote swings of over 30% in the CHP's favor. Overall, the CHP won 35 of Turkey's 81 provincial capitals, with the People's Alliance winning 32. This was the first nationwide election since
1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
where the CHP came first in the popular vote, and the first election where the AK Party did not come first since its foundation in 2001. Nevertheless, the AK Party retained a narrow plurality in the number of district mayoralties won, and the People's Alliance scored small but notable victories against the CHP in
Hatay Hatay Province (, ) is the southernmost Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality of Turkey. Its area is , and its population is 1,686,043 (2022). It is situated mostly outside Anatolia, ...
and
Kırklareli Kırklareli () is a city in the East Thrace, European part of Turkey. It is the seat of Kırklareli Province and Kırklareli District.Meral Akşener, announced her pending resignation after her party almost halved its share of the popular vote.


Background


2019 elections

During the local elections of 2019, the opposition parties had formed alliances in key races, and had narrowly defeated the government in two of the biggest cities in Turkey, namely
Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
and
Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...
. The election in Istanbul was won by a margin smaller than 0.2%, which the government successfully petitioned for a re-run. Τhіѕ сulmіnаtеd іn thе mауοrаl еlесtіοn οf Јunе 2019, whісh thе οррοѕіtіοn wοn іn а lаndѕlіdе.


2023 elections

The elections took place nine months after the 2023 parliamentary and presidential elections, where most parties opposed to President
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...
rallied behind the leader of the
Republican People's Party The Republican People's Party (RPP; , CHP ) is a Kemalism, Kemalist and Social democracy, social democratic political party in Turkey. It is the oldest List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, founded by Mustafa Kemal ...
, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, including the center-right
Good Party The Good Party (Turkish language, Turkish: ''İYİ Parti'') is a Turkish nationalism, nationalist, Kemalism, Kemalist and Conservatism, conservative List of political parties in Turkey, political party in Turkey, established on 25 October 2017 b ...
(İYİ) and the pro-Kurdish Green Left Party (YSP) (now renamed to
Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party The Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (; , abbreviated as DEM Party) is a pro- Kurdish political party in Turkey. It is the legal successor of the Green Left Party and with the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) handing over its work to this ...
(DEM)). Erdoğan, despite the predictions of most surveys, was narrowly reelected. This was despite an ongoing economic crisis and rapidly rising inflation. Following the defeat, the opposition six-party coalition was dissolved by İYİ Party.


Election of Özgür Özel as the leader of CHP

Following the 2023 elections, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu remained as the leader of CHP despite calls for him to resign. This culminated in the contested 2023 party congress, where the deputy leader of the parliamentary group of the CHP,
Özgür Özel Özgür Özel () (born 21 September 1974) is a Turkish pharmacist and politician who has served as Leader of the Republican People's Party, leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) since 2023. He had previously shared the parliamentary group ...
, was elected as the new leader of the CHP. The call for change was led by the mayor of
Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
, Ekrem İmamoğlu, who heavily criticized the way in which the CHP's election campaign was run.


Candidates and alliances


People's Alliance

The governing AKP and their main partner MHP entered the election in a partnership, where they endorsed each others' candidates in key districts. AKP nominated Murat Kurum, Member of Parliament for Istanbul (I) electoral district and former Minister of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change, for the mayoral election in Istanbul, which was endorsed by MHP. In Ankara, the alliance nominated the mayor of the district of Keçiören, Turgut Altınok.


CHP

The main opposition CHP, which had won Ankara and Istanbul in 2019 nominated the same mayors for a second term. Thus, Ekrem İmamoğlu was nominated for the municipality of Istanbul, and
Mansur Yavaş Mansur Yavaş (; born 23 May 1955) is a Turkish lawyer and politician who is currently the Mayor of Ankara, holding the office since April 2019. He was elected in the 2019 Ankara mayoral election as the candidate of the Nation Alliance (Turkey), ...
was nominated in Ankara.


İYİ Party

After the 2023 elections, İYİ leader Meral Akşener, along with the party's executive committee, refused to cooperate with CHP like they did in 2019. This was despite the CHP repeatedly offering an alliance with them.


Political parties participating in the election

General information about the parties that meet the conditions to participate in the election as of 2 January 2024 is listed here. The Innovation Party announced that it would not participate in the election. The places of 35 political parties on the ballot paper were announced by the YSK on 27 January 2024. Because of long-running court cases the
Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...
and the Humanity and Freedom Party were not included in the ballot.


Security concerns and incidents

Around 594,000 security personnel were deployed nationwide to ensure the regular conduct of the election. On 10 February, gunmen opened fire at a campaign event in the Küçükçekmece district municipality of
Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
for AKP mayoral candidate Aziz Yeniay, critically injuring one person. Seventeen people were arrested in connection with the attack. On 10 March, 33 people suspected of involvement with
Islamic State The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...
were arrested in police raids in
Sakarya Province Sakarya () is a province and metropolitan municipality in Turkey, located on the coast of the Black Sea. Its area is , and its population is 1,080,080 (2022). The Sakarya River creates a webbing of estuaries in the province, which is in the Ma ...
on suspicion of plotting attacks ahead of the election. Authorities also recovered weapons, cash and "organizational documents". On election day, one person was killed and 11 others were injured following a dispute over the election of a neighborhood administrator in
Diyarbakır Diyarbakır is the largest Kurdish-majority city in Turkey. It is the administrative center of Diyarbakır Province. Situated around a high plateau by the banks of the Tigris river on which stands the historic Diyarbakır Fortress, it is ...
, while six people were injured in clashes in
Şanlıurfa Province Şanlıurfa Province (; ), also known as Urfa Province, is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality in southeastern Turkey. The city of Şanlıurfa is the capital of the province which be ...
.


Results


Map


Changes in control

The list below shows the parties governing the capitals of the 81 provinces before and after the local elections. Provinces in bold denote metropolitan municipalities.


Key races


Full list

''Note: AK Party is abbreviated "AKP" and Yeniden Refah is abbreviated "YRP" here for visualisation purposes. Metropolitan municipalities are in bold.''


Reactions

President Erdoğan acknowledged the AKP's electoral losses but said that it would mark "not an end for us but rather a turning point", adding that he would respect the result, "correct our mistakes and redress our shortcomings". The CHP’s Özgür Özel praised voters, saying that they had established a "new political order" in Turkey leading to "a new political climate". İYİ leader Meral Akşener called for an extraordinary party congress amid demands for her resignation.


Analysis

This was the first election since the governing Justice and Development Party (AKP)'s establishment in 2001 that it did not come first in a national election, with the CHP winning 37.8% of the vote compared to the AKP's 35.5%. It was the first nationwide election since
1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
in which the CHP came first. CHP affiliated mayors now govern cities which make up 64% of Turkey's population and 80% of its economy. Commentators compared the vote to the 1989 local election, where the centre-left opposition at the time had scored significant victories against long-standing right-wing governments and came first in the popular vote. Nevertheless, the People's Alliance did score some victories against the opposition, taking the traditionally opposition-leaning mayoralties of
Hatay Hatay Province (, ) is the southernmost Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality of Turkey. Its area is , and its population is 1,686,043 (2022). It is situated mostly outside Anatolia, ...
and
Kırklareli Kırklareli () is a city in the East Thrace, European part of Turkey. It is the seat of Kırklareli Province and Kırklareli District.Meral Akşener, called an extraordinary party congress but did not announce whether she would run again for the leadership. Meanwhile, the Islamist conservative
New Welfare Party The New Welfare Party (, YRP) is an Islamist and ultraconservative political party in Turkey, founded on 23 November 2018. The party positions itself as the successor to the Welfare Party ( Turkish: ''Refah Partisi''), which was a prominent Isla ...
(YRP) came third with over 6% of the vote, winning many municipalities in conservative areas from the AKP. The pro-Kurdish DEM Party marginally improved their share of the vote, despite some calls for boycotts in their traditional strongholds due to the likelihood of mayors being forcibly removed from office by the Interior Ministry on charges of supporting separatist terrorism. The
Nationalist Movement Party The Nationalist Movement Party, or alternatively translated as Nationalist Action Party (, MHP), is a Turkish Far-right politics, far-right, ultranationalism, ultranationalist Political parties in Turkey, political party. The group is often de ...
(MHP), the AKP's junior alliance partner, lost votes but retained control of many key municipalities that it had won in the previous election. Described as an "electoral disaster" for President Erdoğan, commentators speculated that any intention by the government to amend the
constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...
to extend his presidential term would likely be put on hold. Given the scale of their victories, both İmamoğlu and Yavaş are widely seen as possible opposition candidates for the next Turkish presidential election, which the government refused to bring forward in light of the results despite speculation over early elections.


Canceled annulment

On 2 April, authorities annulled the victory of DEM’s Abdullah Zeydan, who won more than 55% of the vote in the mayoral election in Van and declared his rival, Abdullah Arvas from the AKP, the winner despite garnering only 27% of the vote. The decision led to anti-government protests in Van and Istanbul, as well as a rally in Ankara. The CHP sent members to Van in support. Tuncer Bakırhan of the DEM called the reversal a "political coup" while the party referred to it as "unlawful and illegitimate". The following day, the Supreme Election Board heard Zeydan's appeal and reinstated him as the winner.


Notes


References

{{Turkish elections
Local elections Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...
Local elections Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...
Local elections in Turkey