Tepebaşı Mayor Ataç Ends 54-Year CHP Membership, Joins YENİ Party

Quick summary

Eskişehir Tepebaşı Mayor Ahmet Ataç ended his 54-year CHP membership and joined Muharrem İnce's YENİ Party. The move strengthens opposition ranks in Eskişehir, where the CHP holds the metropolitan authority, and will reshape calculations for the 2028 local elections.

Why it matters

The loss of a long-serving mayor is reshaping political balance in Eskişehir and will influence how votes are distributed across the city in the 2028 elections. YENİ Party's gain of its first mayor represents the party becoming a genuine actor in local politics.

Key takeaways

• ›Ahmet Ataç was a CHP member since 1972 and resigned from his 54-year party affiliation on August 8 via social media.
• ›YENİ Party has for the first time obtained a position at the mayor level since its founding.
• ›Ataç's departure is not merely symbolic; it affects control of the Tepebaşı district in Eskişehir, where the CHP governs at the metropolitan level.
• ›The mayor emphasized in his decision that principles must stand above individuals and offices, and said he will remain faithful to Atatürk's vision of a contemporary Turkey.