Merkezefendi Mayor Şeniz Doğan, her husband Mehmet Ali Doğan and many others were detained in a police operation against Merkezefendi Municipality in Denizli. On the morning of 27 October, police searched various municipal units, including the Financial Services and Public Works directorates, as well as Şeniz Doğan’s home. Denizli Metropolitan Mayor Bülent Nuri Çavuşoğlu criticized the detentions, saying that using this method against people who could appear before judicial authorities when summoned undermined confidence in justice, and recalled the presumption of innocence. Merkezefendi Municipality had also been targeted in an operation on 15 May 2026 over allegations of “bribery” and “bid rigging,” in which 12 people were arrested. Police searched the municipality again on 16 October. Şeniz Doğan, who was elected mayor from the CHP in 2019 and re-elected with 57.78 percent of the vote in the 2024 local elections, left the CHP and joined YENİ Parti in September 2026.
27 October 2026
bianet