2024 Istanbul mayoral election

2024 Istanbul mayoral elections
	Metropolitan Municipality
Mayor before election; Ekrem İmamoğlu; CHP	Elected Mayor ; Ekrem İmamoğlu; CHP

Istanbul, Turkey's largest city, held mayoral elections on 31 March 2024 as part of the 2024 Turkish local elections.^[1] Preliminary results suggested incumbent mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu was re-elected.

Background and candidates

Ekrem İmamoğlu of the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP); İmamoğlu, when elected in 2019, became the first non-AK Party mayor of Istanbul in 25 years.^[1] In August 2023, he announced his intention to stand again, despite legal challenges to his candidacy.^[2]

On 7 January, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of Turkey and leader of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), announced its candidate, Murat Kurum.^[1]

Başak Demirtaş, the wife of imprisoned pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) leader Selahattin Demirtaş announced her intention to run but later withdrew.^[3] On 9 February, the HDP's successor, the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM) named Murat Çepni and Meral Danış Beştaş as its joint mayoral candidates, with the final decision on who would lead to be left in the event of them winning the election.^[4]

Campaigning

Both İmamoğlu and Kurum have pledged to implement infrastructure projects to reinforce buildings against earthquakes and to ease chronic traffic congestion in the city.^[5]

Incidents

On 10 February, gunmen opened fire at a campaign event in the Küçükçekmece district municipality for AK Party mayoral candidate Aziz Yeniay, critically injuring one person. Seventeen people were arrested in connection with the attack.^[6]

Results

Metropolitan municipality mayoral election

Overall results


Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Ekrem İmamoğlu	Republican People's Party	4,438,727	51.21
	Murat Kurum	Justice and Development Party	3,431,871	39.59
	Mehmet Altınöz	New Welfare Party	226,731	2.62
	Azmi Karamahmutoğlu	Victory Party	183,901	2.12
	Meral Danış Beştaş	DEM Party	183,827	2.12
	Mehmet Satuk Buğra Kavuncu	Good Party	54,241	0.63
	Birol Aydın	Felicity Party	48,897	0.56
	Emre Berk Hacıgüzeller	Homeland Party	14,860	0.17
	İdris Şahin	Democracy and Progress Party	11,417	0.13
	Burhanettin Aktürk	New Turkey Party	10,407	0.12
	Mustafa Aytaş	Rights and Freedoms Party	8,769	0.10
	Cihan Erdoğanyılmaz	Independent Turkey Party	8,534	0.10
	Orhan Gökdemir	Communist Party of Turkey	7,408	0.09
	Nesim Pakır	Democratic Left Party	5,273	0.06
	İbrahim Okan Özkan	Patriotic Party	4,904	0.06
	Vedat Taylan Yıldız	Independent	4,748	0.05
	Umut Çınar	Motherland Party	2,992	0.03
	Osman Tekin	Anatolian Unity Party	2,185	0.03
	Hasan Hüsnü Güner	Nation Party	2,025	0.02
	Ziya İncedere	Communist Movement of Turkey	1,951	0.02
	Muharrem Mutlu	Justice Unity Party	1,827	0.02
	Merve Karataş	Independent	1,652	0.02
	Ishak Akbay	Independent	1,263	0.01
	Hüseyin Işık	National Path Party	1,135	0.01
	Hülya Kavuzlu Karaman	Independent	1,090	0.01
	Adem Bayraktar	Independent	970	0.01
	Vedat Öztürk	Independent	889	0.01
	Galip Menteşe	Independent	782	0.01
	Osman Çelik	Hearth Party	699	0.01
	Memet Ali Aydoğmuş	Independent	332	0.00
	Fatma Ragibe Kanıkuru Loğoğlu	Independent	279	0.00
	Abdullah Arli	Independent	260	0.00
	Sena Elest Akıncı	Independent	243	0.00
	Orhan Çebi	Independent	232	0.00
	Habip Aksu	Independent	203	0.00
	Bilen Akpınar	Independent	192	0.00
	Yaşar Polat	Independent	187	0.00
	Burak Emre Çetin	Independent	185	0.00
	Cemal Tarancı	Independent	180	0.00
	Güven Akıcı	Independent	179	0.00
	Polat Erdoğan	Independent	160	0.00
	Atakan Bozyayla	Independent	154	0.00
	Yüksel Özden	Independent	152	0.00
	Ömer Karvan	Independent	148	0.00
	Ahmet Soytürk	Independent	140	0.00
	Hüseyin Durmaz	Independent	136	0.00
	Mirhat Tekin Brusk	Independent	127	0.00
	Uğur Etlik	Independent	119	0.00
	Ahmet Birikmen	Independent	111	0.00
Total			8,667,694	100.00

Valid votes			8,667,694	96.63
Invalid/blank votes			302,683	3.37
Total votes			8,970,377	100.00
Registered voters/turnout			11,314,534	79.28
Source: Supreme Election Council of Turkey

District elections

Full list

District	Before	Elected
Adalar	CHP	CHP
Arnavutköy	AK Party	AK Party
Ataşehir	CHP	CHP
Avcılar	CHP	CHP
Bağcılar	AK Party	AK Party
Bahçelievler	AK Party	AK Party
Bakırköy	CHP	CHP
Başakşehir	AK Party	AK Party
Bayrampaşa	AK Party	CHP
Beşiktaş	CHP	CHP

District	Before	Elected
Beykoz	AK Party	CHP
Beylikdüzü	CHP	CHP
Beyoğlu	AK Party	CHP
Büyükçekmece	CHP	CHP
Çatalca	AK Party	CHP
Çekmeköy	AK Party	CHP
Esenler	AK Party	AK Party
Esenyurt	CHP	CHP
Eyüpsultan	AK Party	CHP
Fatih	AK Party	AK Party

District	Before	Elected
Gaziosmanpaşa	AK Party	CHP
Güngören	AK Party	AK Party
Kadıköy	CHP	CHP
Kâğıthane	AK Party	AK Party
Kartal	CHP	CHP
Küçükçekmece	CHP	CHP
Maltepe	CHP	CHP
Pendik	AK Party	AK Party
Sancaktepe	AK Party	CHP
Sarıyer	CHP	CHP

District	Before	Elected
Silivri	MHP	CHP
Sultanbeyli	AK Party	AK Party
Sultangazi	AK Party	AK Party
Şile	AK Party	CHP
Şişli	CHP	CHP
Tuzla	AK Party	CHP
Ümraniye	AK Party	AK Party
Üsküdar	AK Party	CHP
Zeytinburnu	AK Party	AK Party

Reactions

President Erdoğan acknowledged the AK Party’s defeat in Istanbul and other cities but said that it would mark "not an end for us but rather a turning point", adding that he would respect the result. Speaking to supporters in Saraçhane [tr], İmamoğlu said that “our citizens' trust and faith in us has been rewarded".^[7]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Erdogan names ex-minister as his party's Istanbul mayor candidate". Reuters. 7 January 2024.
^ Samson, Adam; Yackley, Ayla Jean (15 August 2023). "Istanbul mayor announces re-election bid in challenge to Erdoğan". Financial Times.
^ "Başak Demirtaş opts out of Istanbul mayoral race". Hurriyet Daily News. 7 February 2024.
^ "Turkey's pro-Kurdish DEM party enters Istanbul mayor's race". France 24. 9 February 2024.
^ "Things to know about the Turkish local elections that will gauge Erdogan's popularity". Associated Press. 26 March 2024.
^ "17 people detained after attack at Istanbul election campaign event, official says". Associated Press. 11 February 2024.
^ "Turkish local elections: Opposition stuns Erdogan with historic victory". BBC. 1 April 2024.

[reuters-2024-01-07-1] "Erdogan names ex-minister as his party's Istanbul mayor candidate". Reuters. 7 January 2024.

[2] Samson, Adam; Yackley, Ayla Jean (15 August 2023). "Istanbul mayor announces re-election bid in challenge to Erdoğan". Financial Times.

[3] "Başak Demirtaş opts out of Istanbul mayoral race". Hurriyet Daily News. 7 February 2024.

[4] "Turkey's pro-Kurdish DEM party enters Istanbul mayor's race". France 24. 9 February 2024.

[5] "Things to know about the Turkish local elections that will gauge Erdogan's popularity". Associated Press. 26 March 2024.

[6] "17 people detained after attack at Istanbul election campaign event, official says". Associated Press. 11 February 2024.

[7] "Turkish local elections: Opposition stuns Erdogan with historic victory". BBC. 1 April 2024.

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