Turkey detains 38 people in 2 days of operations targeting 3 main opposition-run municipalities
Turkish authorities detained at least 38 people, including municipal officials and a mayor, over the course of two days in operations targeting three opposition-run municipalities, in an expanding crackdown on the country’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).
On Friday prosecutors in the southern city of Mersin ordered the detention of some 31 people in an investigation into alleged corruption in the Yenişehir district municipality.
The operation targeted senior municipal figures, including deputy mayors, department heads and company representatives, over allegations of bribery, bid-rigging and misconduct in public tenders, according to the Birgün daily. Police carried out coordinated raids on residences and municipal offices and seized documents and digital materials.
The investigation in Yenişehir follows a broader corruption probe launched last month into the Mersin Metropolitan Municipality, also run by the CHP. In that case authorities detained several municipal officials, including senior staff, over allegations including bribery, document falsification, fraud and money laundering, and seized multiple properties, vehicles and other assets.
Also on Friday, authorities in the northwestern city of Bolu detained three people, including Deputy Mayor Leyla Beykoz and a city council member, as part of a separate investigation into alleged misconduct that has already led to the arrest and suspension of Mayor Tanju Özcan, a member of the CHP.
Özcan was detained in late February along with more than a dozen suspects in a probe into alleged extortion linked to municipal dealings with private businesses. He was later jailed pending trial and suspended from office, with prosecutors accusing municipal officials of coercive practices tied to contracts and inspections.
On Thursday, authorities in the western province of İzmir detained four people, including Bornova Mayor Ömer Eşki, as part of an investigation into alleged fraud and falsification of official documents.
The suspects were referred to court after questioning but were released on Friday under judicial supervision, with the investigation continuing. The case involves allegations that a municipal employee received a salary without performing work.
The latest detentions come amid an intensifying legal campaign against the CHP following its sweeping victory in the March 2024 local elections, when the party won control of many major cities.
Since then, prosecutors have launched a series of investigations targeting opposition mayors and municipal officials, often on corruption-related charges that critics say are politically motivated. Courts have also invalidated CHP party congress results and replaced elected party officials with court-appointed administrators in multiple cities.
The most prominent case involves İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, who was detained on March 19, 2025, days before CHP members selected him as their presidential candidate for a future election. He faces charges including leading a criminal organization, embezzlement, bid-rigging, bribery and espionage in an indictment that prosecutors say documents a decade-long criminal enterprise within the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality.
İmamoğlu, who first won the İstanbul mayoralty in 2019 after defeating President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s party in a historic upset, is widely regarded as the opposition’s strongest potential challenger to Erdoğan in the presidential election scheduled for 2028.
Opposition leaders say the legal cases are part of a broader strategy to weaken the CHP’s local power base and pressure its officials to defect to the ruling party. Over 60 opposition mayors have switched allegiance to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) over the past two years, a trend critics attribute to political pressure and intimidation.
