The mayor of Istanbul and the main rival of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the elections, Ekrem Imamoglu, was sentenced to one year and eight months in prison.
This is reported by the Turkish media outlet Politika Haber.
The court acquitted Imamoglu on charges of "inciting persecution" of a prosecutor, but sentenced him to 2 months and 15 days in prison for "threatening" and one year and 5 months for "insulting a public servant".
Since the total prison term did not exceed two years, Imamoglu is not prohibited from engaging in political activity.
At the same time, he faces a number of other lawsuits, and there remains a risk that he will still be banned from engaging in political activities.
Who is Ekrem Imamoglu?
Imamoglu is one of the leaders of the opposition Republican Peopleʼs Party. He was considered the main rival of incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the next presidential election in 2028. However, on March 18, Imamogluʼs higher education diploma was canceled, allegedly due to technical violations. Having a diploma is a prerequisite for running in the presidential election.
Imamoglu has been elected mayor of Istanbul twice, in 2019 and 2023, defeating candidates from Recep Tayyip Erdoganʼs ruling conservative Justice and Development Party. The Turkish president also began his political career as mayor of Istanbul in the 1990s and has repeatedly said: "Whoever owns Istanbul owns all of Turkey".
On March 19, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was detained, as were several dozen of his associates. And on March 23, a court ruled to keep him in custody until the end of the trial. Imamoglu is accused of bribery and aiding a terrorist organization — the Kurdistan Workersʼ Party, which is banned in Turkey. The Istanbul prosecutorʼs office also stated that Imamoglu was allegedly the "leader of a criminal group" and engaged in extortion, fraud and bribery.
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