PES President Sergei Stanishev said:
“I would like to congratulate Ekrem Imamoglu, the newly elected mayor of the biggest city in Europe and our sister party Republican People’s Party (CHP), on this historic victory.
“By voting for the opposition, the citizens of Istanbul sent a clear sign to Erdogan and his government that the country needs to be brought back to true democracy, rule of law, and freedom of speech. The victory of Imamoglu is a new hope for Turkey.”
Ekrem Imamoglu will become mayor of Istanbul after the city was ruled by Erdogan’s AKP for 25 years. The victory of the candidate from the PES associated member party CHP is even more significant, as it comes after the election was re-run after Erdogan claimed irregularities in the counting of the first casting of ballots in March.
“I would like to express our admiration to Mr Imamoglu, to the Republican People’s Party (CHP), and its leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and all opposition forces in Turkey, for their successful campaign and their devotion to democracy. I would also would like to thank the other PES associated member party from Turkey – Democratic Party (HDP) – for calling on their supporters to vote for Imamoglu and for democracy”, Sergei Stanishev added.
