Mansur Yavaş set to run again for Ankara mayor

ANKARA

With a few months left for the local elections slated for March next year, Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş has announced his intention to seek reelection.

"If God permits and you support me, I want to stand in the elections and hopefully be with you for another five years. Are you ready to govern Ankara together for another five years with fairness, justice and respect for the rights of orphans?" Yavaş asked before a gathered crowd at the opening ceremony of a park at Atatürk Forest Farm (AOÇ) in the capital on Aug. 30.

Yavaş pledged to maintain his approach of "being everyone's mayor and presiding without a badge, as befits a statesman."

The announcement followed a recent move by main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu as he confirmed the party's intention to re-nominate both Yavaş and Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, who also signaled his candidacy for the upcoming election on Aug. 15.

In the 2019 local elections, CHP mayors received support from the İYİ (Good) Party.

İYİ Party leader Meral Akşener last week declared that her party will enter the municipal elections scheduled for March next year without forming any alliances, urging other political parties to follow suit.

When questioned by journalists, Akşener suggested the possibility of collaboration at the provincial level, indicating a willingness to cooperate under certain circumstances.