Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu emerges as the new CHP leader

After Baykal’s resignation, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who got a nationwide fame during his candidacy for Istanbul municipality elections, emerged as the most possible CHP leaders. It seems that Mr. Baykal was hoping for a comeback but after yesterday’s developments within CHP circles, Mr. Kılıçdaroğlu, he is gone for good.

Mr. Kılıçdaroğlu proved himself a capable polemicist and will probably take it to upper levels following Mr. Baykal’s steps. He acquired a nickname “Gandhi Kemal” in his performance as an honest and modest citizen. He represents the quintessential civil servant who is loyal to the State and Kemalist principles and who has a distaste for elected politicians – although he is elected, too. This type, whose better example might  be Bülent Ecevit, allures a section of constituency with a particular populism and proves to have a very narrow vision for the country. Still, most of the CHP voters are excited as the new leader might break the status quo for their behalf in the political spectrum. AKP leadership would probably prefer Mr. Baykal who lost so many times to AKP in elections and thus kept maintain the status quo…

Related posts might provide you some instances where Mr. Kılıçdaroğlu failed before.

Welcome Gandhi Kemal

FATMA DİŞLİ ZIBAK – Will Kılıçdaroğlu succeed or not?

CHP will get 40 percent of votes, says new candidate for party leader

FATMA DİŞLİ ZIBAK – Kılıçdaroğlu?s leadership prospects

CHP deputies did not listen to Baykal

Baykal?s departure and achieving a real change in the Republican People?s Party by Özgür Erkan

Since the rise of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) to power in 2002, Turkey can be classified as a two-and-a-half party system.

Kılıçdaroğlu announces candidacy to lead Turkish opposition party

Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu announced Monday that he will be a candidate to replace the leader of Turkey’s main opposition party.

If Baykal returns, ?secular women? will leave CHP

by ATILGAN BAYAR – AKŞAM

The video allegedly featuring images of Deniz Baykal is a two-layered scandal. Yes, the first layer involves a ?tabloid scandal.?

Alevism, CHP and Kılıçdaroğlu

by HASAN BÜLENT KAHRAMAN-  SABAH

Let?s be realistic and let us admit the truth. Ever since Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu?s name was mentioned as a candidate for the chairmanship of the Republican People?s Party (CHP), many speculations have been made over his Alevism.

FATMA DİŞLİ ZIBAK – Eyes on Kılıçdaroğlu

The name of Republican People?s Party (CHP) İstanbul deputy Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who was the party?s mayoral candidate for İstanbul in 2009 and was promoted by some media outlets as the strongest candidate to succeed CHP?s long-time leader Deniz Baykal, has been heard frequently in recent days as the figure who will assume CHP leadership in the wake of a video scandal that led to Baykal?s resignation last week.

Where does the CHP go fromhere? by Atilla Yayla

It was ironic in many ways that Deniz Baykal resigned from his post as chairman of the Republican People’s Party (CHP) after a video was posted on the Internet showing him in a private room with a female deputy who had been a long-time colleague of his.

ŞAHİN ALPAY – Does the ?sex tape open bright future for Turkey??

?A scandalous video showing the leader of Turkey?s main opposition party cavorting half-naked with his former secretary, now a member of parliament, has thrown Turkish politics into what could be very positive disarray.?

İHSAN DAĞI – Sex, lies and videotapes of Deniz Baykal

It is like an Almodóvar movie. It involves sex, lies and violence, and in our case, an ultimate battle for survival on the part of both the person who is filmed having a forbidden affair and the rest whose careers depend on the survival of the person filmed. You guessed it right; I?m talking about the scandal surrounding the personal life of Deniz Baykal, the resigned leader of the Republican People?s Party (CHP).

Veteran journalist Cemal: Judicial coup process is not over

Journalist Hasan Cemal, whose most recent book, ?Türkiye’nin Asker Sorunu? (Turkey’s Military Problem), has been on the shelves since Wednesday, has said that even though the age of blatant coups seems to be over in Turkey, the threat of a judicial coup is still present.

YAVUZ BAYDAR – ?Turkey?s military problem? (1)

?At least 51 percent of stocks in this company called Turkey have always been owned by its military?? This analogy, once expressed by a prominent Turkish businessman and banker, could be very helpful to understanding the decades-long battle and ensuing suffering for democracy in the country.