The process that brought Özgür Özel to the position of party leader of the opposition CHP in 2023 was not legitimate, and the former leader, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, must regain his position.
A higher legal body decided this on Friday evening, and thus the ruling against Özel stands.
"The fire never goes out. This nation, which does not give up and has resisted a coup attempt, stands with us," he wrote on X.
Earlier on Friday, he had called on the same platform for demonstrations and for his supporters to "rewrite history" - television images on Friday evening showed Özel supporters gathered to show their support outside the CHP headquarters a short distance from central Ankara.
Changed profile
According to the newspaper Hürriyet, Özel and Kilicdaroglu discussed during the evening whether and when the party could gather for a new congress, and then possibly hold a new leadership election.
77-year-old Kilicdaroglu, who challenged Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the 2023 presidential election, wrote on Thursday on X that "CHP is not a battlefield for personal ambitions" and that the court's decision should not tear the party apart from within but be seen as an opportunity for unity.
At the same time, according to AP, he has already tried to gather former colleagues to replace the party board. According to CNN Türk, he has also updated his social media profile to read "party leader of the CHP."
Suspicions of a witch hunt
Even when allegations of election fraud emerged, many suspected they were part of the Erdogan regime's crackdown on dissent.
The party has been repeatedly subjected to legal proceedings and arrests following its successes in the 2024 local elections, including Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who is seen as Erdogan's main rival.
