A Turkish appeals court in Ankara has annulled the 2023 party congress that elected Ozgur Ozel as chairman of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), declaring the vote invalid. The ruling effectively removes Ozel from his position and reinstates former leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu as interim head. The court cited allegations of electoral fraud and inducements used to secure Ozel’s victory. The decision is seen as politically advantageous for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Under Ozel’s leadership, the CHP had grown in popularity, nearly matching Erdogan’s ruling AK Party. Ozel became a prominent opposition figure after the 2025 arrest and imprisonment of Istanbul’s former mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, which triggered nationwide protests. A lower court had previously dismissed the allegations against the 2023 congress, but the appeals court overturned that ruling.

Following the verdict, the CHP called an emergency meeting at its Ankara headquarters, where hundreds of supporters protested. The Istanbul BIST 100 stock index dropped more than six percent, prompting a temporary suspension of trading. The next presidential election in Turkey is scheduled for 2028.