It is too soon to tell whether the current wave of popular anger and disillusionment in Turkey will evolve into a coherent movement capable of mounting a credible opposition to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. But one thing should be obvious to the main opposition party: When the game is rigged, the only hope is to flip the board.
BARCELONA – It finally happened: Ekrem İmamoğlu, Istanbul’s mayor and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s most formidable likely challenger in the 2028 presidential election, was formally arrested on flimsy corruption charges, after four days in custody. The move was a long time coming, and it cannot be dismissed as mere political maneuvering. It might not seem like it, but this is how coups often happen nowadays: with no blood and no noise beyond the whimper of a democracy dying in handcuffs.
BARCELONA – It finally happened: Ekrem İmamoğlu, Istanbul’s mayor and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s most formidable likely challenger in the 2028 presidential election, was formally arrested on flimsy corruption charges, after four days in custody. The move was a long time coming, and it cannot be dismissed as mere political maneuvering. It might not seem like it, but this is how coups often happen nowadays: with no blood and no noise beyond the whimper of a democracy dying in handcuffs.