Turkey Arrests Presidential Candidate Ekrem Imamoglu

It was, according to Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party, a “coup against our next president.” In the early hours of March 19, Turkish police arrested Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul who last month announced his intention to run for president. The mayor’s arrest is a worrying demonstration of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s contempt for basic democratic norms.

One day earlier, Istanbul University annulled Imamoglu’s status as a graduate of Turkey’s oldest university. The Turkish constitution requires all presidential candidates to be university graduates as a precondition for running. Imamoglu was then arrested and charged by police for alleged “corrupt practices in municipal business,” including bribery, fraud, money laundering, personal enrichment, and bid rigging.

Erdogan Fears Imamoglu’s Challenge

Erdogan has long feared running against Imamoglu in a presidential election given the charismatic Imamoglu’s popularity with a large proportion of voters. Imamoglu won the mayoralty of Istanbul over Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) in 2019 and did so again in 2024.

In the last few years, Turkish prosecutors have attempted to derail the 53-year-old Imamoglu’s continued rise. The annulment of his university diploma and his subsequent arrest have ignited political protests across Turkey. The government is now taking steps to block the public’s access to the internet and social media platforms, as well as restricting public transportation in Istanbul, Turkey’s largest city, to prevent protestors from organizing.

Arrest Commands International Attention

Imamoglu’s arrest is garnering the attention of European politicians, including the Party of European Socialists (PES), the European Parliament’s main left-wing entity. The government’s undemocratic escalation has resulted in the Turkish Lira’s sharp decline against the euro and the U.S. dollar as investors lose confidence that Turkey is a country governed by the rule of law.

Imamoglu has vowed to challenge the charges pertaining to his arrest and the annulment of his diploma. However, Turkey’s judiciary lacks credibility and is widely staffed by prosecutors and judges who are loyal to Erdogan. Erdogan recently called upon the European Union to restart Turkey’s accession process to the bloc, arguing that Turkey was the only country able to meaningfully augment Europe’s defense and military capabilities in the face of the threat posed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

U.S. and EU Must Underline Solidarity With Imamoglu

Imamoglu’s arbitrary arrest is an affront to Europe’s democratic values. The European Union should not entertain any notion of restarting Turkey’s accession process until the rule of law has been restored, beginning with Imamoglu’s release and allowing him to run for office without hindrance. Meanwhile, Washington should declare its solidarity with Imamoglu. Erdogan requested a meeting at the White House before the end of April during a recent telephone conversation with President Donald Trump. The Trump administration should refuse this request and demand that Ankara guarantee the rule of law.

Sinan Ciddi is a nonresident senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD). Follow him on X @SinanCiddi. For more analysis from Sinan and FDD, please subscribe HERE. Follow FDD on X @FDD. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focused on national security and foreign policy.