Turkish MP Ümit Dikbayir set to join AK Party

Sakarya deputy Ümit Dikbayir, who has served as an independent MP after leaving the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and previously held roles in the İYİ Party, announced that he will join the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party). The move is expected to be formalised on 14 August, the anniversary of AK Party’s founding, and coincides with reports that another İYİ Party MP, Mehmet Mustafa Gürban, will also switch parties.

Dikbayir, who has been critical of the CHP’s leadership and of the government’s “terror‑free Turkey” peace process, said he had been invited several times by AK Party and waited for the right moment. His switch is being closely watched as a high‑profile realignment within Turkish parliamentary politics.