Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a prominent rival of President Tayyip Erdogan, is currently embroiled in a series of legal battles involving charges of corruption, insulting officials, and alleged terrorism links. These legal challenges are taking place amid a broader crackdown on the opposition in Turkey.
Imamoglu, who first became mayor in 2019 after delivering a significant electoral defeat to Erdogan’s ruling AK Party (AKP), secured a second term in 2024. His Republican People’s Party (CHP) achieved widespread success in local elections that year.
Polls suggest that Imamoglu’s lead over Erdogan has strengthened since his arrest and subsequent jailing pending a court ruling.
The following is a timeline of events detailing the crackdown on Imamoglu and other figures, which the opposition has criticized as a politically motivated and anti-democratic effort in Turkey, a major emerging market, NATO member, and country led by Erdogan for 22 years:
- October 31, 2024: Ahmet Ozer, the CHP mayor of Istanbul’s Esenyurt district, is jailed pending trial on charges of having links to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), an organization banned as a terrorist group in Turkey.
- January 17, 2025: Riza Akpolat, the CHP mayor of Istanbul’s central Besiktas district, is jailed pending trial in connection with an investigation into an alleged criminal organization suspected of rigging public tenders through bribery.
- March 18, 2025: Istanbul University annuls Imamoglu’s university degree due to irregularities, potentially hindering his eligibility to run for president in the 2028 election, as a degree is a prerequisite for presidential candidacy.
- March 19, 2025: Turkish police detain Imamoglu on charges of corruption and aiding a terrorist group, a move the main opposition party calls “a coup against our next president.” This event triggers a sharp decline in the lira, falling up to 12% to a record low of 42 against the dollar. Bonds and stocks also decline amid investor concerns about the erosion of the rule of law. The central bank responds by suspending one-week repo auctions and increasing its overnight lending rate to 46%.
- March 21, 2025: Protests against Imamoglu’s detention spread across Turkey, marking the largest display of civil disobedience in over a decade.
- March 23, 2025: A Turkish court jails Imamoglu pending trial on corruption charges, further intensifying protests involving hundreds of thousands of Turks. On the same day, millions of CHP members and non-members endorse Imamoglu as the party’s presidential candidate.
- March 25, 2025: Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek and Central Bank Governor Fatih Karahan assure international investors that they will take necessary measures to address the market turmoil caused by Imamoglu’s arrest.
- March 27, 2025: The number of people detained in connection with the nationwide protests approaches 1,900, and Turkey rejects what it describes as biased foreign statements regarding Imamoglu’s arrest.
- April 2, 2025: The government condemns opposition calls for a mass commercial boycott following Imamoglu’s arrest, labeling them as an economic “sabotage attempt.”
- April 11, 2025: Imamoglu appears in court for the first time since his arrest and denies previous accusations of insulting a prosecutor.
- April 14, 2025: The head of the Council of Europe expresses concern to Reuters about potential human rights violations in Turkey following Imamoglu’s jailing.
- April 17, 2025: The central bank unexpectedly raises its key interest rate by 350 basis points to 46%, reversing an easing cycle in response to the market turmoil triggered by Imamoglu’s arrest.
- April 30, 2025: A court jails 18 Istanbul municipality officials pending trial on corruption charges, further expanding the crackdown on the opposition and Imamoglu
