Ekrem Imamoglu, rival of Turkish president Erdogan, faces a new criminal charge

Thomson Reuters

· Posted: Jul 04, 2025 9:50 AM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

Turkish prosecutors charged Istanbul's mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, connected Friday with falsifying his assemblage diploma, a caller lawsuit threatening much years successful situation for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's main rival, already jailed pending corruption charges helium denies.

Imamoglu, astatine the centre of a sprawling ineligible crackdown connected the main absorption party, has been jailed since March 23 pending trial. The 54-year-old denies the allegations against him, which his enactment says are orchestrated to support Erdogan successful power.

His indictment implicit his diploma was reported by Milliyet newspaper, which said prosecutors were seeking 8 years and 9 months of situation clip for the caller charges. Reuters could not instantly get the document.

On March 18, Istanbul University said it had annulled Imamoglu's diploma. He was detained a time aboriginal connected the corruption charges, triggering Turkey's largest protests successful a decade, and aboriginal jailed pending trial.

The March apprehension came with the absorption Republican People's Party (CHP) poised wrong days to sanction the two-term politician its authoritative statesmanlike challenger to Erdogan, who has tally Turkey for much than 2 decades aft becoming premier curate successful 2004.

Crackdown connected the opposition

The adjacent predetermination is acceptable for 2028, but Erdogan has reached his two-term bounds arsenic president, aft amending the constitution successful 2018.

The 72-year-old president is again seeking to amend the constitution, but has denied it is simply a determination intended to support him successful power.

Erdogan faced his worst electoral decision past twelvemonth erstwhile Imamoglu's CHP swept Turkey's large cities and defeated his ruling AK Party successful erstwhile strongholds successful nationwide municipal elections.

Born successful 1971 successful the Black Sea state of Trabzon, Imamoglu studied concern medication astatine Istanbul University earlier entering his family's operation business. 

Imamoglu joined the CHP in 2008 and became politician of Istanbul's Beylikduzu territory successful 2014.

He won the citywide predetermination successful 2019. A tribunal annulled his archetypal victory, lone for him to triumph the rerun predetermination by an adjacent wider margin.

He won re-election arsenic Istanbul's politician successful March 2024. That happened contempt an earlier ineligible battle, erstwhile helium was sentenced successful 2022 to two-and-a-half years successful situation for insulting nationalist officials, though an appeals tribunal has yet to regularisation successful the case.

Another lawsuit past twelvemonth accused him of tender-rigging. His supporters presumption these charges arsenic politically motivated attempts to sideline him, a assertion Erdogan and the AKP deny.

Still another investigation accuses Imamoglu and six others of aiding the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), considered a violent organisation by Turkey and its Western allies.

Imamoglu's troubles are part of a months-long crackdown connected the opposition. Early past month, 3 CHP mayors of Istanbul districts were suspended by national authorities.

While initially focused connected Istanbul, this week Turkish authorities detained 109 people, including absorption enactment members and a erstwhile mayor, successful Izimir, the Anadolu authorities quality agency said.