Turkey’s main opposition, the CHP, is facing its toughest test yet: mass arrests, sham court rulings, and the ouster of key leaders—including Istanbul’s mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, Erdoğan’s chief rival. With trials looming that could replace CHP leadership with government loyalists, the party warns of a legal ‘coup.’ What does this crackdown mean for Turkey’s fragile economy, its 2028 elections, and the future of democracy itself? We break it down in this episode of Rethinking Democracy with featured guests Selva Demiralp, Professor of Economics at Koç University, and Seda Demiralp, Assistant Professor of Politics and International Relations at Işık University.
Recorded September 8, 2025