Police seize CHP Istanbul headquarters, remove İmamoğlu poster and install Kılıçdaroğlu display

Following the court‑ordered reinstatement of Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu as CHP leader, his image was hung on the wall of the CHP Istanbul provincial headquarters, replacing a large poster of the party’s presidential candidate, Ekrem İmamoğlu. Within hours, supporters of İmamoğlu re‑installed his poster, prompting a heated "poster war".

At night, Çevik Kuvvet police units entered the building and established a police blockade. The İmamoğlu poster was taken down a second time, and Kılıçdaroğlu’s poster was re‑affixed. Party officials, including Istanbul provincial chairman Özgür Çelik and Dilek Kaya İmamoğlu, denounced the police action as an unlawful interference with democratic politics and a violation of the rule of law.

The incident sparked accusations of political intimidation, with party members reporting that police prevented entry and, in some accounts, used force against activists inside the building. The dispute remains ongoing, underscoring rising tension between the CHP’s leadership and law‑enforcement authorities.