Turkish authorities have detained Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the main rival of President Tayyip Erdogan, on charges of corruption and aiding a terrorist group in what the main opposition party called “a coup against our next president”.
The move against the popular two-term mayor caps a months-long legal crackdown on opposition figures across the country which has been criticised as a politicised attempt to hurt their electoral prospects and silence dissent.
Imamoglu, 54, who leads Erdogan in some opinion polls, would be named his Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) official presidential candidate within days. He faces two separate investigations, including charges of leading a crime organisation, bribery and tender rigging.
In a handwritten letter shared on social media, the detained mayor said Turks would respond to the “lies, plots and traps” against him. Earlier, before leaving home for the police station, he said he would not give up in the face of pressure.
Önce Allah’a sonra milletimize emanetim! pic.twitter.com/tYfqrPedaw— Ekrem İmamoğlu (@ekrem_imamoglu) March 19, 2025
Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc warned against linking Erdogan to Imamoglu’s detention or other legal processes, using words like “coup” to describe it, and also against street protests.
Though authorities temporarily banned protests and police shut down some city streets, hundreds of people gathered at the police station and chanted: “The day will come when (Erdogan’s) AK Party is called to account”.
Thousands gathered in Istanbul’s Sarachane district on Wednesday, while CHP leader Ozgur Ozel addressed crowds near the municipality building, saying Erdogan had targeted Imamoglu due to fears of losing to him in the ballots.
“Today, Tayyip Erdogan is trying to break Ekrem Imamoglu’s wrist, which he could not bend three times, with the stick of the judiciary,” Ozel said, referring to municipal election losses suffered by Erdogan and his AKP against Imamoglu and the CHP.
“I am challenging you from here. Are you up for it Erdogan? Are you up for coming before us?,” he added.
Several hundred others protested the detention at the Middle East Technical University (METU) in Ankara and chanted anti-government slogans, while police fired tear gas to disperse them. Scattered protests and gatherings also took place in other cities, including Izmir and Trabzon.
Ozel had earlier said his party would go ahead and select Imamoglu as presidential candidate on Sunday irrespective. “Turkey is going through a coup against the next president. We are facing a coup attempt here,” he said.
The next election is set for 2028 but Erdogan has reached his two-term limit as president after having earlier served as prime minister. If he wishes to run again he must call an early election or change the constitution.
Erdogan, 71, faced his worst electoral defeat in nationwide municipal elections last year when Imamoglu’s CHP swept Turkey’s major cities and defeated his ruling AK Party in former strongholds.
