Turkish police arrest Istanbul’s mayor, a key Erdogan rival

Imamoglu, a popular politician and member of the opposition Republican People’s Party, or CHP, became mayor of Turkey’s largest city in 2019 and won reelection last year in high-profile races where he defeated candidates from Erdogan’s ruling party. He was expected to be selected as the CHP’s candidate for president in the party’s primary elections scheduled for this weekend. The mayorship of Istanbul is seen as a political stepping stone: Erdogan once held the role.

Over two decades in power, Erdogan has tightened his control over state institutions and deepened restrictions on speech and expression, including within the judiciary, bringing charges against and imprisoning opponents. He has also exerted widespread control over the media, universities and other institutions.

A statement from the prosecutor’s office accused Imamoglu of using his position to lead profit-making schemes, including improperly awarding contracts for government works, and also accused him of aiding the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a militant Kurdish group considered a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and others.

Imamoglu denied the allegations against him in a video released on his X account just before his detention and said in a separate social media statement that “the will of the people cannot be silenced through intimidation or unlawful acts.” Ozgur Ozel, leader of the CHP, described the arrest as a “coup attempt against our next president.”

Some of Imamoglu’s close aides and Istanbul’s Sisli and Beylikduzu district mayors were among those arrested, according to Turkish media reports.

Gokhan Gunaydin, a lawmaker and the CHP’s group deputy chairman, told The Washington Post that it was not immediately clear whether Imamoglu would be released while under investigation or kept in detention, but that the charges against him were “slanderous,” and “anyone who has a conscience” knows the arrest was politically motivated.

Even in light of Erdogan’s history of state capture and undermining opponents, arresting a candidate imminently poised to become his key challenger signals new territory, said Soner Cagaptay, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, a U.S. think tank.

“To me, it shows a level of desperation. … While [Erdogan has] jailed Imamoglu, he may have inadvertently created his counter political hero,” Cagaptay said.

With Imamoglu’s arrest, Erdogan has created a story strikingly similar to one that spurred his rise three decades ago. Like Imamoglu, Erdogan was once a popular mayor of Istanbul.

In 1998, Turkey’s secularist political system targeted and jailed then-mayor Erdogan on charges of inciting religious hatred, Cagaptay said. After serving a four-month jail sentence, Erdogan emerged as a “political antihero” in the eyes of segments of the public, and went on to landslide political victories.

“Because Imamoglu has so many of Erdogan’s qualities, he could easily make a sweepy comeback,” Cagaptay said. “And so I think Erdogan is in trouble and not Imamoglu.”

Speaking at a televised news conference, Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said the investigation was carried out rigorously and warned against street protests, criticizing those who used “terms such as ‘coup’” to describe the arrests. Erdogan’s communications chief, Fahrettin Altun, wrote on social media that critics were subjecting the president to a “smear campaign.”

Prosecutors have also accused Imamoglu of assisting the PKK through his alleged links to the Peoples’ Democratic Congress (HDK), an alliance of left-wing and pro-Kurdish groups. In 2024 local elections, the pro-Kurdish DEM Party and the CHP reached an informal agreement by which they avoided directly competing with each other in many constituencies.

Turkey’s next presidential election is scheduled for 2028, and analysts have said Erdogan may look to extend his rule then.

The Turkish lira and stock market plunged after Imamoglu’s arrest. The lira suffered a decline of more than 10 percent, while stocks fell more than 5 percent in value.

Access to multiple social media platforms, including X, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, appeared to be restricted in Turkey on Wednesday morning, according to cybersecurity monitoring group NetBlocks. Meanwhile, Istanbul’s governor issued a statement Wednesday banning demonstrations for four days, and closed major roads and several metro stations to block any potential protest.

Despite this, supporters of Imamoglu gathered in the streets of Istanbul, protesting near Istanbul University and clashing with police, and protesting outside the CHP headquarters in Ankara, the capital. The Istanbul city council, which was led by Imamoglu, called for a protest outside the municipal building Wednesday evening.

“I want Imamoglu to become the president. I want him to be proven right because he is very determined,” said Yusuf Sonmez, a 32-year-old goldsmith, among a crowd of people gathered outside the Istanbul city hall.

“His future is very bright. This is all to eliminate him as a political rival. But we believe that he will fight,” Hilal Saglam, 37, a software manager, said of Imamoglu’s arrest. Others in the crowd described their reasons for attending as a defense of democracy and the right to free elections.

The latest arrests came a day after Imamoglu’s diploma was annulled by Istanbul University, which cited irregularities in Imamoglu’s transfer from a northern Cyprus university more than 30 years ago. The move could effectively block Imamoglu from running for president, as a university degree is required to compete in presidential elections under Turkish law. The CHP called the annulment a politically motivated move, and Imamoglu is expected to challenge the decision in court.

Imamoglu has been charged in multiple cases and was sentenced in 2022 to more than two years in prison for “insulting public figures.” His appeal in that case is ongoing, according to the Associated Press.

Vinall reported from Seoul, Cheung from London and Westfall from New York.