İYİ Party to nominate candidates in all 81 provinces

ANKARA

The İYİ (Good) Party will nominate its own candidates in all 81 provinces in the upcoming municipal elections scheduled for next March, the spokesperson has announced.

"It has been decided to determine our party's own candidates in 81 provinces and districts by meeting with the public in every electoral area, and [the party's] presidential council has been authorized in this process," Kürşad Zorlu remarked during a press statement held following the party's general executive board meeting on Sept. 13.

The decision comes on the heels of main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's announcement that his party will renominate the current mayors of Istanbul and Ankara, Ekrem İmamoğlu and Mansur Yavaş.

In the 2019 elections, the İYİ Party backed İmamoğlu and Yavaş, and refrained from fielding its own candidates in the key battlegrounds.

When questioned about the party's stance in Istanbul and Ankara, Zorlu responded, "We are handling the candidate issue free from all the people and discussions you mentioned. A few of our friends had different opinions, but the decision was taken by a majority vote."

The spokesperson also reiterated the party's criticism of alliance expectations. "We are against Türkiye being taken into a 'pincer politics' with this alliance mechanism, and we think that we will make this journey together with the Turkish nation with their voice and support."