04.09.2026 23:11
CHP and the New Party have decided to act together ahead of the Üsküdar Municipality Deputy Mayor election. The two parties stated that they would protect Sinem Dedetaş's "trust" and emphasized that council members would not split. On the other hand, as 4 CHP council members switched to the AK Party, reducing the number of seats to 23, the detention of 3 CHP members made the election arithmetic critical.
The CHP and the New Party have decided to act together in the Üsküdar Deputy Mayor elections to be held tomorrow.
“HAND IN HAND, SIDE BY SIDE, WE WILL ALL PROTECT SİNEM DEDETAŞ'S LEGACY IN ÜSKÜDAR”
The CHP and the New Party district organizations made a statement in front of the Üsküdar Municipality building regarding the deputy mayor election to be held tomorrow.
CHP Üsküdar District Chairman Zerrin Civandağ said, "We will not give up Üsküdar. Our party's candidate won the election held after the operation against our Mayor Sinem Dedetaş. Upon the objection of the AKP Group, the court annulled the decision and decided to hold a new election tomorrow. The AKP is doing everything to win the election it lost through the will of the people with underhanded tricks. The transfer of four municipal council members to the AKP and the detention of three municipal council members before the repeated election are all part of this. As the CHP and New Party district chairmen, we share with the public that we will act together with all our council members and will not hand over Üsküdar to the AKP at the desk, in an election we won with the votes of our people."
New Party Üsküdar District Chairman Berk Tütüncü also said, "With God's permission, hand in hand, side by side, we will all protect Sinem Dedetaş's legacy in Üsküdar. Hand in hand, side by side, we will be here tomorrow at 09:30. This evening at 20:00, we welcome all our neighbors from Üsküdar to our municipality."
"NO ONE SHOULD EXPECT THE REPUBLICAN PEOPLE'S PARTY MUNICIPAL COUNCIL MEMBERS TO SPLIT"
CHP Deputy Chairman Necdet Saraç said, "We witnessed a historic moment. The CHP mayor was dismissed, an election was held for the deputy mayor position, and that was also annulled. The importance of this is that the people of Üsküdar elected Sinem Dedetaş as mayor. The fact that the New Party and the CHP came together to make a joint press statement is extremely important and valuable. We want everyone in Turkey to show this sensitivity. A municipality elected by the will of the people cannot be replaced by behind-the-scenes games."
CHP Spokesperson Müslim Sarı said, "Üsküdar is a special place; it was a district we won under very difficult conditions. We know that after the 2023 elections, the President gave it special importance. Our Üsküdar organization has not allowed this until now. The operations carried out especially in the last week, the detention of three of our municipal council members, and the joining of the AKP by four members who resigned from the CHP have strained the mathematics and equation here. However, this has strengthened our resolve even more. No one should expect the Republican People's Party Municipal Council members to split. No one should have such an expectation. Together with our New Party friends and the municipal council members within the corporate identity of the Republican People's Party, we will carry this process without division, in unity, integrity, and solidarity. Üsküdar Municipality was the CHP's municipality. Tomorrow, Üsküdar Municipality will again remain the CHP's municipality. In 2029, Üsküdar Municipality will also be the CHP's municipality. Let no one have any doubt about this."
4 CHP COUNCIL MEMBERS DEFECTED TO THE AK PARTY
Following the judicial process regarding the Üsküdar Deputy Mayor election, the election will be held again. The Istanbul Governorship announced that the deputy mayor election will be held on Saturday, September 5, in line with the decision of the Regional Administrative Court.
CHP members of the Üsküdar Municipal Council, Ahmet Başbaydar, Ayhan Aydın, Hüseyin Kazan, and Tahsin Usta, left their party and joined the AK Party. With these transfers, the number of seats for the People's Alliance increased from 17 to 21, while the number of seats for the CHP decreased from 27 to 23.
CHP LEADS ON PAPER, BUT THE ARITHMETIC IS CRITICAL
In the council table, the CHP still leads the People's Alliance with 23 seats compared to 21. However, the detention of 3 CHP council members makes the situation on election day critical. Among the detained members are Amine Cansu Çelik and Ekrem Baki, who previously engaged in politics in the AK Party. If the detention of the three members continues until election day and they cannot participate in the vote, the number of votes the CHP can effectively cast could drop to 20. In such a scenario, the outcome of the deputy mayor election in Üsküdar could completely change against the 21 votes of the People's Alliance.