MHP announces 55 more candidates for mayoral elections

ANKARA

The Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) has officially unveiled an additional 55 mayoral candidates to compete in eight provinces and 47 districts for the upcoming local elections on March 31.

This latest announcement on Jan. 11 brings the total number of MHP candidates to 110.

Among the notable nominations is Mehmet Kemal Yazıcıoğlu, son of former governor Recep Yazıcıoğlu, who will be representing the party in Tokat. The late governor also served in Aydın, Erzincan and Denizli provinces.

The MHP's slate also includes figures such as journalist Sezer Küçükkurt in Afyonkarahisar, İrfan Çıtak, leading the party in Aksaray's central district, and İlhan Durak, the provincial chairman in Bolu.

Vedat Soner Başer, the party's provincial official in Gümüşhane, Harun Ulusoy, former deputy mayor in Kırıkkale, Derya Bulut, a member of the party's central executive board in Kırklareli, and Reha Kars, one of the party's provincial executives in Sivas, further enrich the list.

The MHP is anticipated to form a coalition with the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)-led People's Alliance in 30 metropolitan cities and 29 other provinces for the upcoming local elections.

The party's previous day's announcement included 55 other candidates for two metropolitan, 12 non-metropolitan provincial and 41 district mayoral positions. Notable nominations from that announcement include Cengiz Ergün for Manisa and Serdar Soydan for the mayorship in Mersin.

In seven cities where the MHP currently holds governance, the party has decided to renominate existing mayors. This includes Bayram Çelik in Amasya, Hüseyin Fahri Fırıncıoğlu in Bartın, Hükmü Pekmezci in Bayburt, İsmail Hakkı Esen in Çankırı, Bekir Aksun in Erzincan, Rafet Vergili in Karabük, Savaş Kalaycı in Karaman and Alim Işık in Kütahya.

Notable changes were introduced in two provinces, with Yüksel Aydın, a member of the party's central executive board, running in Kastamonu, and İbrahim Çenet, the district governor of Mersin's Toroslar district, being nominated in Osmaniye.

In the AKP-controlled provinces of Nevşehir and Niğde, the MHP's presence will be marked by the candidacy of provincial chairman Adnan Doğu and Hamdi Doğan, the vice-rector of a university, respectively.