CHP launches nationwide campaign for İmamoğlu's release, polls

TRABZON

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Özgür Özel has launched a nationwide signature campaign calling for the release of jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu and the holding of early elections.

“It is a signature campaign where millions of people who say ‘I want my candidate with me and my ballot box’ will call for their candidate and the election,” Özel said in Trabzon, İmamoğlu’s hometown, pledging to continue the campaign across Türkiye.

İmamoğlu was chosen as the CHP’s presidential candidate in a primary election on March 23. He was arrested on charges of corruption and alleged links to terrorism on the same day.

He was taken into custody on March 19, along with several others, including two district mayors of Istanbul. A total of 48 individuals, including İmamoğlu, remain in custody pending trial.

Özel, who visited İmamoğlu's father Hasan İmamoğlu, expressed his sorrow over the arrest and the current political climate.

“While our friends are in prison, while thousands of our students are in prison and detained, this Eid [al-Fitr] did not come to us as a holiday, it came to us as sadness,” he said, emphasizing the political unrest.

The CHP leader said the campaign would not be confined to urban centers, stating that rallies would be held weekly in various provinces, and every Wednesday in Istanbul's districts.

A CHP rally on March 29 in Maltepe attracted an estimated 2.2 million people. Police blocked off several roads leading to the site, implementing strict security measures in the area.

“We have now left the anxiety, fear and fatigue at home. We are on the streets, in the squares,” Özel declared at the rally. “You are writing history here today, you are seizing the future of Türkiye, resisting these putschists, defending democracy and our future.”

The ongoing protests that followed İmamoğlu’s detention have led to further arrests. According to the chief public prosecutor’s office in Istanbul, five additional demonstrators were arrested, bringing the total number to 268.

“I vouch for the cleanliness, honesty and honor of Mr. Ekrem as much as my own honor,” Özel said. “I believe in the innocence of all our friends who are being held inside, and I salute them all wholeheartedly.”