Turkish Authorities Detain Istanbul Mayor and Would-Be Presidential Contender

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu has long been regarded as a potential challenger to Turkey’s long-ruling incumbent president.

Ekrem Imamoglu, the opposition Republican People's Party's (CHP) mayoral candidate in Istanbul, gestures during a rally in Istanbul on May 6, 2019. Lefteris Pitarakis/AP Photo

Turkish authorities on March 19 detained Ekrem Imamoglu, mayor of Istanbul and a would-be presidential candidate, on corruption and terrorism-related charges.

The Republican People’s Party (CHP), Turkey’s main opposition party, of which Imamoglu is a leading member, decried his arrest as a “coup attempt against our next president.”