Murat Kurum AKP's Istanbul mayoral candidate
ISTANBUL
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has officially declared that Murat Kurum, the former environment, urbanization and climate change minister, will be his Justice and Development Party's (AKP) candidate for the mayoral seat in Istanbul.
This announcement was made during a pivotal meeting where the AKP unveiled its initial slate of mayoral candidates for the upcoming local polls across Türkiye.
Born in 1976 in the capital Ankara, Kurum's career includes serving at the state mass housing agency TOKİ from 2005 to 2009 and later as the general manager of Emlak Konut, a real estate investment company affiliated with the now-defunct prime ministry. Following his ministerial role from 2018 to 2023, Kurum transitioned to becoming an Istanbul deputy for the AKP.
"We are appearing before our people with the candidates we have chosen to fulfill our promise of true municipalism," Erdoğan said, accusing the current administration of a lack of service.
"We, like all Istanbulites, see that Istanbul cannot tolerate losing another five years," he declared. "We will definitely take Istanbul out of the interregnum of the last five years."
The candidate presentation meeting held at the Haliç Congress Center on Jan. 7 also saw the unveiling of hopefuls for 10 other metropolitan cities and nominees for 15 cities without metropolitan status.
The party chose to nominate the current mayors in all of the metropolitan cities it currently governs, except for Samsun. This lineup includes Yücel Yılmaz in Balıkesir, Alinur Aktaş in Bursa, Osman Zolan in Denizli, Mehmet Sekmen in Erzurum, Tahir Büyükakın in Kocaeli and Hilmi Güler in Ordu.
Notably, in Samsun, Halit Doğan, the current mayor of Çarşamba district, will be the AKP's hopeful. In Aydın, where the CHP holds power, the AKP selected Mustafa Savaş, the city's deputy. In Eskişehir, Nebi Hatipoğlu, who recently resigned from the İYİ (Good) Party, and in Muğla, Aydın Ayaydın, a former CHP deputy, are set to represent the AKP.
In non-metropolitan provinces expected to witness intense battles, the AKP nominated Belgin İba, the party's provincial chair in Edirne. In Bitlis and Yalova, current mayors Nesrullah Tanğlay and Mehmet Tutuk are set to compete, while former mayor Mehmet Kocatepe is the party's nominee in Artvin.
The remaining 46 mayoral candidates, including those for Ankara, are scheduled to be announced on Jan. 15 during a meeting in the capital. Simultaneously, the AKP will reveal its election manifesto.
With the incumbent mayor, Ekrem İmamoğlu, once again announced as the candidate for the CHP and the İYİ Party declaring its intention to field its own candidate, Erdoğan has been vocal about the paramount importance of reclaiming Istanbul for the AKP. The slogan "Istanbul again" has become a central theme in his party's election campaign.
Meanwhile, the ruling alliance led by the AKP and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) is expected to collaborate once more, with Erdoğan's party not fielding candidates in seven provinces but instead supporting MHP's hopefuls.
The provinces in focus – Manisa, Mersin, Erzincan, Bartın, Kars, Kırklareli and Osmaniye – echo the strategic alliance in the 2019 elections.
The AKP, on the other hand, will garner support from MHP in key battlegrounds such as Istanbul and the capital Ankara. In 22 provinces, People's Alliance partners will independently contest the elections, presenting their own candidates.
Beyond the alliance with MHP, the ruling party is reportedly engaging in discussions with others it collaborated with in May's parliamentary and presidential elections – the New Welfare Party (YRP), the Great Union Party (BBP), the Democratic Left Party (DSP) and the Free Cause Party (HÜDA PAR).
Alliance talks are expected to resume at the beginning of the week, with YRP leader Fatih Erbakan stating that discussions primarily focus on possible alliances in Ankara, Istanbul and İzmir. Erbakan said that if no agreement is reached, his party is prepared to field its own mayoral candidates in these cities.