site.btaTurkiye's Largest Opposition Force in Search of New Leader

Turkiye's main opposition Republican People's Party (RPP) will hold its extraordinary congress on November 4 and 5 in Ankara. The event is being held against the background of preparations for the local elections in March next year.

The main question expected to be answered is whether the opposition will have a new leader or whether the status quo of Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the leader of the RPP since May 2010, will continue.

RPP is Turkiye's oldest political party. It was founded by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and is considered the guardian and perpetuator of his ideas and principles.
The congress was supposed to take place last year, but it was postponed, on the one hand because of the presidential and parliamentary elections in May of this year, and on the other hand - on the order of the leader Kilicdaroglu.

Kilicdaroglu's failure in May's election, when he lost to Erdogan, caused a split in the opposition party and among its supporters. Demands for Kilicdaroglu's resignation and for a change and a new course in the party's policies have not subsided for months. Therefore, the congress is expected to help calm down tensions.

Two sides have formed. The reformers are calling for the replacement of Kilicdaroglu after losing the election in the hope that a new leader will strengthen the party and generate new energy among voters. They include Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and Ozgur Ozel, a candidate for Kilicdaroglu's post. Immediately after losing the election, the reformers launched a campaign for Kilicdaroglu's resignation, which is still ongoing and is expected to be reflected in the congress. 

The other side consists of Kilicdaroglu's supporters. The longtime RPP leader turned a deaf ear to the demands for his resignation that poured in after the election. In response to a question about whether there will be changes in the RPP, Kilicdaroglu answered "yes". However, he referred to a change in the RPP statutes, not its chair, even though it is the demands for his resignation that are at the heart of the conflict, analysts said.

It should be noted, however, that a number of important RPP structures, such as the party organizations in Izmir and Balikesir, have publicly expressed support for Kilicdaroglu.

A total of 1,300 delegates will have the right to vote at the congress. Deniz Zeyrek, an analyst close to the opposition, predicted that the two days of the congress will be dominated by a confrontation between the delegates of the two trends. 

The upcoming RPP congress attracted the attention of pro-government journalists as well.

Hurriyet analyst Abdulkadir Selvi commented that this "will be the most critical congress in Kilicdaroglu's political career". According to Selvi, the gap between Kilicdaroglu and his opponent Ozgür Ozel has narrowed.

The demands for fundamental changes in the RPP are not only expressed by party members, but also in the electorate. This is a matter not only of leadership change, but also of changes in the RPP strategy in general.

A survey shows that around 80-85% of the RPP electorate is demanding a change in the party's leader. At the same time, about 25-30% of the voters in the ruling Justice and Development Party want to change its leader.

The election of the members of the RPP party council, the most influential collective body of the party, is also eagerly awaited. The election of the 60 members of the new composition of the RPP council will take place after the election of its chair.

Notably, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who supports Ozel against Kilicdaroglu, took on the task of chairing the two-day congress.