CHP candidate wins Üsküdar deputy mayor election, but legal challenge halts proceedings

Sibel Tan Çetinkaya, who was elected deputy mayor of Üsküdar on August 5 following the arrest and removal of Mayor Sinem Dedetaş, has addressed the ongoing legal challenges to her victory. The election itself was a lengthy and at times contentious affair, lasting approximately five hours.

Çetinkaya secured victory in the fourth round of voting, garnering 22 votes to the Cumhur İttifak candidate Dündar Ziya Gültekin's 18. However, the results were immediately contested by the AKP Istanbul Provincial Chairman, Abdullah Özdemir, who claimed that some votes were invalidated without cause.

Istanbul's 2nd Administrative Court subsequently issued a stay of execution, citing the potential for "irreparable harm." The Istanbul Governorship announced that until a new Deputy Mayor is elected, the first or second deputy speaker of the Üsküdar Municipal Council would temporarily assume mayoral duties.

Despite the legal hurdles, Çetinkaya remains confident in her win, emphasizing the clear mathematical outcome. "The election math is clear," she stated. "Even if all disputed votes are accepted as valid, the necessity of proceeding to the fourth round in the third round is not eliminated; the winner does not change in the fourth round." She further explained that if five invalidated votes from the third round were deemed valid, her vote count and Gültekin's would both reach 22, failing to secure the required 24 votes for a majority. This scenario would necessitate a fourth round, where, even with all contested votes counted, she would still win 25 to 19. Çetinkaya vowed to defend the will of Üsküdar and the democratic mandate of the council "to the end" in the legal arena.