Turkey municipal politics: Yeni Party surge

In early August 2026, six district mayors in Bursa left the Republican People’s Party (CHP) for the newly formed Yeni Party, taking most municipal council members with them. The defections were framed as evidence of a deepening democratic crisis and coincided with the removal of Bursa’s metropolitan mayor on corruption charges.

The following day, Yeni Party officials announced that the remaining CHP mayors in Bursa also switched allegiance, leaving the city without a single CHP mayor. About 94 % of the municipal council now sits with Yeni Party representatives, consolidating the party’s control of Bursa’s local government.

Similar realignments were reported in other municipalities, such as Yunusemre (Manisa) and Denizli, where council members who defected to Yeni Party altered chairmanships and committee memberships. Nationwide, more than 150 municipalities have shifted to Yeni Party, although major metropolitan areas—including Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir—remain under CHP control.