Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul, is now in the midst of his own precarious legal crisis. He’s been convicted on several corruption counts, leading to his current incarceration. His arrest has sparked mass protests across Turkiye. Supporters are protesting the politically motivated act they see as wrongful imprisonment of a recently democratically elected president. Imamoglu had been seen as a serious candidate for the 2028 presidential race. With legal issues piling up to defend against, his political future has recently been thrown into doubt.
Imamoglu’s time in office has been defined by a commitment to develop Istanbul’s infrastructure, expand social services, promote civil rights, protect the city’s intellectual heritage and restore democracy. Critics cite his lack of action on behalf of the city during the yet-to-be-forecast deluge of 2019 as perhaps the most damning shortfall. Despite these criticisms, his supporters argue that he embodies the spirit of the people and represents a shift toward more progressive policies.
Arrest and Public Reaction
Imamoglu’s arrest came in the context of widespread accusations of corruption, sparking protests throughout the country. His right-wing supporters claim millions have taken to the streets in response to strictly politically motivated, manufactured charges. Things got intense as citizens began expressing their unhappiness at the supposed injustice of jailing a beloved mayor.
Dilek Imamoglu, Ekrem’s wife, expressed her belief that the real reason for her husband’s imprisonment is his electoral success against opponents. She wrote on Twitter, “The very reason why Ekrem Imamoglu is in custody could not be more obvious. Because he beaten his opponents in the ballot by a wide margin at the ballot box four times.” Judging by how passionately many of his supporters react to this sentiment, that’s true. In fact, they view the lawsuits themselves as a tactic meant to stifle their political competition.
Even as the protests have spread, opposition leaders have denounced the implications of Imamoglu’s case on a wider scale. Ozel, a prominent political analyst, remarked on the government’s crackdown on dissent, saying, “They’ve detained hundreds of our children, thousands of our youths… They only had one goal in mind: to intimidate them … make sure they never go out again.”
The Political Landscape
Imamoglu’s political trajectory is strikingly similar to that of current President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Similar to Erdogan, Imamoglu began his national political career as the mayor of Istanbul. As reporters and political analysts have pointed out, Erdogan has long claimed that whoever wins the harbor city of Istanbul will go on to win national elections. This connection highlights the importance of Imamoglu’s role not just in the city, but on the national stage as well.
Even as he has been justly criticized for some of his governance choices, Imamoglu is proving to be a giant-killing, populist force in Turkish politics. Ziya Meral, a political observer, commented on Imamoglu’s appeal: “Some of his appeal boils down to his personality: warm, friendly, articulate, accessible. Second, he’s not divisive, which is unusual at this stage in Turkish politics. That shows Imamoglu still likely commands significant backing from the city’s electorate.
His jailing has also pretty much eliminated him from the 2024 presidential election. Now, serious questions linger about the future of his political career. Erdogan himself has even mocked Imamoglu’s previous legal troubles as irrelevant. Erdogan emphasized that courts were accountable for all those who committed treason against the Turkish national will. He promised they would keep doing things like that going forward.
Support and Opposition
Imamoglu supporters still congregate and celebrate Imamoglu, seeing their struggle as a struggle against the overextension of government power. The protests reflect a mounting anger at how the current administration has dealt with dissent and political opposition.
As protests continue throughout Turkiye, demonstrators fill the streets with chants and banners demanding justice. These rallies can be supercharged, electric. These results clearly demonstrate general public outrage for the government’s prosecution of Imamoglu and other individuals who are seen as targets of political persecution.
As Ozel put it after one day of protest, “We all saw how the junta alliance got panicked by us. His remark served to spotlight their chaos. Those who hadn’t made it past their door for decades found themselves dashing out. They wanted to see for themselves the state of the ailing country. This sentiment is emblematic of a larger worry about ideational governance and accountability in Turkiye.
