Turkey's CHP faces internal leadership clashes in İzmir and Trabzon

In İzmir, the Republican People's Party (CHP) Central Executive Board appointed former Çiğli mayor Utku Gümrükçü as provincial chair, replacing the dismissed chair Çağatay Güç. Supporters of Güç staged a guard at the party headquarters, and a brief melee broke out when Gümrükçü entered the building. Protesters removed a photo of elected party leader Özgür Özel and security was increased. Gümrükçü said, "Bu partide alın teri olan herkes başımızın tacı" and stressed that the party came to unite, not divide.

In Trabzon, a CHP consultation and solidarity meeting was held in Ortahisar. District chairman Haluk Batmaz denounced the national leadership as betraying the party, calling the 13‑year tenure of the former chairman "ihanet" (treason) and urging a new congress. He linked the party’s struggle to a broader anti‑imperialist stance. Both events illustrate mounting tension within the CHP over recent top‑down leadership appointments.