Thousands gather in Turkey in opposition to political ban of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu

• Thousands of protesters denounce the conviction and political ban of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.
• He was sentenced to two years and seven months in prison.
• He was found guilty of insulting public officials in a speech following his 2019 election victory.
• Polls indicate that Imamoglu would overcome President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
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Thousands of protesters gathered in Turkey on Thursday to denounce the conviction and political ban of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, singing slogans critical of President Tayyip Erdogan and his ruling AK Party ahead of next year’s elections.

Wednesday, a Turkish court sentenced Imamoglu, a prominent opponent of Erdogan, to two years and seven months in prison, which must be affirmed by an appeals court. The ruling was widely criticized domestically and internationally as a misuse of democracy.

Late on Thursday, news outlets reported that the prosecutor in the case had filed a judicial challenge to the verdict, requesting that Imamoglu serve a longer prison term. No other information was immediately provided.

As patriotic music blared, the audience waved Turkish flags in front of Istanbul’s municipality building, which was draped with a massive photo of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the creator of Turkey whose secular values, according to Erdogan’s opponents, are at risk.

The audience chanted, “Rights, law, justice. … The day will come when the AKP is called to account.”

The presidential and legislative elections scheduled for June of next year could provide one of the greatest electoral challenges to Erdogan’s two decades in power, as Turks struggle with escalating living costs and a depreciating currency. This week, the lira reached a record low against the dollar.

“The government is afraid and that’s why there was such a verdict. Nobody can stop this nation,” said Filiz Kumbasar, 56, who traveled to the rally from Duzce, a hamlet 200 kilometers (125 miles) from Istanbul, the 16-million-person commercial hub of Turkey.

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Imamoglu was found guilty of insulting public officials in a speech he gave following his 2019 election victory in Istanbul. According to critics, Turkish courts defer to Erdogan’s will. According to the administration, the judiciary is independent.

“You beat them two times already and you’ll do it again,” Imamoglu told the crowd, referring to an initial vote he won in 2019 that was annulled and a subsequent re-poll that he also won.

“All 16 million Istanbulites, our nation and our big Turkey alliance is behind me. We will change this order in the election next year,” he said.

The six-party opposition alliance created against Erdogan, led by the Republican People’s Party (CHP) of Imamoglu, has yet to agree on a presidential candidate. Polls indicate that Imamoglu would overcome Erdogan, who has been mentioned as a prospective opponent.

If the court’s verdict is maintained, he will be prohibited from running.

“We are here today to protect our rights and the votes of millions of people from Istanbul. We are here because we want to live in a country where there’s rule of law,” Aslihan Gulhan, who works in the tourism industry, expressed thus.

Imamoglu was tried for a remark in which he called “fools” those who invalidated the first 2019 election, in which he narrowly defeated an AKP candidate. According to Imamoglu, his remark was in retaliation to Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, who he claims used similar language against him.

His convincing victory in the re-run election ended the 25-year hegemony of the AKP and its predecessors in Istanbul.

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