Özgür Özel's Planned New Party to Challenge CHP's Opposition Role

CHP Group Leader Özgür Özel announced that a new political party is being prepared. Work on the party’s statutes, program, logo and name is ongoing, with the tentative label “Yeni Parti”. Legal steps are expected to be completed by the start of the court‑ordered judicial holiday on 20 July, after which the party will be formally presented in a large press event. Özel expects at least 80 CHP MPs to join the new formation, which would give it the status of the main opposition party, ending the CHP’s 24‑year hold on that title.

The move follows a series of internal upheavals in the CHP. A court‑issued “mutlak butlan” decision removed Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu from the party leadership and sparked a purge that saw eight provincial chiefs dismissed and seven new appointments made. The party’s Central Management Board also announced further disciplinary actions and discussed convening an extraordinary congress. While some members, such as MP Umut Akdoğan, have publicly refused any leadership role in the new party, others, including local figure Hikmet Saatçı, have urged supporters to join Özel’s project. The emerging party aims to shift the opposition’s orientation toward the left, seeking alliances with parties such as the Türkiye İşçi Partisi and SOL Parti.