The Man Who Defied Erdogan to Take Istanbul Says It’ll Be ‘Great’
- Imamoglu ran inclusive and upbeat campaign to be city’s mayor
- New city mayor shares Black Sea origin with Turkey’s president
Ekrem Imamoglu on June 23.
Photographer: Burak Kara/Getty Images
Ekrem Imamoglu, the man who defied Recep Tayyip Erdogan to take Istanbul, relied on an upbeat message in stark contrast to the type of rhetoric usually deployed by the president. That may be why he won more votes than Erdogan ever did in Turkey’s biggest city.
As a former businessman and district mayor, Imamoglu was unused to the limelight before his candidacy in Istanbul’s election. After he was nominated to run as mayor, the 49-year-old waged an inclusive campaign and avoided criticizing Erdogan directly. After his victory in Sunday’s rerun, Imamoglu said he was ready to work with the president to tackle Istanbul’s problems, including transport gridlock and issues related to Syrian refugees.