ISTANBUL (Medyascope) – Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) has reclaimed control over Istanbul’s central Üsküdar district, following the late July arrest of opposition district mayor Sinem Dedetaş, who won her seat in Turkey’s 2024 local elections that saw major gains for the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).
By Leo Kendrick • Medyascope
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The capture of Üsküdar two years ago by Turkey’s opposition was a notable development in the traditionally conservative district long known as an AKP stronghold.
Since early 2025, Turkey has seen persistent judicial pressure and crackdowns on opposition-controlled municipalities. In April, 20 members of Üsküdar’s district government were arrested in an alleged anti-corruption operation.
Following her late July arrest, former district mayor Dedetaş was removed from office by Turkey’s Interior Ministry on August 1st. An election to replace Dedetaş was then held on August 5th in Üsküdar’s district council. Sibiel Tan Çetinkaya, a member of the opposition CHP, was elected to replace Dedetaş.
Following Çetinkaya’s victory, AKP candidate Dündar Ziya Gültekin filed an objection to the election result at an Istanbul court, demanding the result be annulled. On August 24th, the court ordered the election result in Üsküdar null and void on the basis of invalid ballots during the initial voting process. Following an unsuccessful challenge to the ruling by Çetinkaya, the court ordered a rerun of the election in early September.
Prior to the planned rerun of the election on September 5th, Üsküdar’s opposition-controlled administration was hit with another wave of arrests including a member of the municipal council in charge of voting in a new district mayor to replace Dedetaş. The same week, four members of the Üsküdar district council belonging to the opposition CHP announced they were transferring to the ruling AKP, a move criticized by opposition leaders and analysts as an attempt to avoid detention and arrest.
The planned election rerun was then delayed until September 8th due to insufficient numbers in the district council.
In yesterday’s (September 8) election, AKP candidate Gültekin was elected district mayor of Üsküdar following three rounds of voting.
Protest outside of Üsküdar municipal building
On Tuesday afternoon, protestors gathered outside of the main municipal building in central Üsküdar.
Özgür Çelik, chairman of the Istanbul branch of the opposition Yeni Party, made a statement to the press outside the municipal building, condemning the result of the rerun election:
“The AKP was not the one that won the election here in Üsküdar. It was won by the prosecutors at the Kartal Courthouse [who ordered the arrests of district council members] and by Istanbul Governor Davut Gül [who scheduled the election rerun].”
In his comments, Çelik also alleged that Ayhan Aydın, one of the CHP district council members who transferred to the AKP in early September, was threatened by prosecutors with imprisonment should he refuse to transfer to Turkey’s ruling party.
Following these comments, an investigation was launched into Çelik by the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor.
Turkey’s ruling party retakes district amid arrests, defections | Written/translated by Leo Kendrick | Edited by Medyascope English Newsroom
