Who is Ekrem Imamoglu — Istanbul's mayoral candidate?
CHP’s candidate for Istanbul, the cultural and economic capital of Turkey, is facing the country's veteran politician and former prime minister Binali Yildirim.
Ekrem Imamoglu, the candidate of opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), talks from atop his campaign bus to supporters during a rally in Istanbul, Wednesday, June 19, 2019, ahead of June 23 re-run of Istanbul elections.
Ekrem Imamoglu, a 49-year-old Turkish politician representing the opposition party CHP, secured 48.8 percent vote share in the March 31 municipal polls in Istanbul, but the results were later annulled by Turkey's Supreme Election Council (YSK) after the governing AK Party reported irregularities in the counting process.
With the election rerun slated for June 23, Istanbulites will once again exercise their right to vote for the mayorship of one of the world's most iconic cities.
Imamoglu has been campaigning on the promise of reducing urban poverty and upgrading the city's infrastructure, including metro lines and green spaces.
Born in 1970 in Trabzon, Imamoglu graduated from Trabzon High School and holds a degree in Business Administration from Istanbul University. With a master's degree in human resources and management, he started his career in 1992 in a family company that carries out construction. He worked as chairman of the executive board for the company.
Imamoglu played football as an amateur during his school years. He took several executive positions at Trabzonspor Football Club, Trabzonspor Basketball Club and Beylikduzu Club.
He served as the CHP’s head of Beylikduzu district in 2009 and was elected as mayor of Beylikduzu on March 30, 2014.
He is married to Dilek Imamoglu and has a daughter and two sons.
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