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Left Party Sol Parti | |
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| Abbreviation | SOL Parti |
| Leader | Önder İşleyen[1] |
| Founded | 21 January 1996 (1996-01-21) (as Freedom and Solidarity Party) December 22, 2019 (rebranding) |
| Headquarters | Ankara,Turkey |
| Membership(2025) |  5,894[2] |
| Ideology | Socialism Left-wing populism Anti-capitalism Secularism |
| Political position | Left-wing tofar-left |
| National affiliation | United June Movement (2015–2022) Union of Socialist Forces (2022–2023) |
| European affiliation | Party of the European Left |
| Colors | Red andBlue |
| District municipalities | 1 / 973 |
| Belde Municipalities | 1 / 388 |
| Municipal Assemblies | 5 / 20,952 |
| Party flag | |
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| Website | |
| http://solparti.org | |
TheLeft Party (Turkish:Sol Parti, often written asSOL Parti) is asecular,socialistpolitical party in Turkey.[3] The Party was founded after the Freedom and Solidarity Party (Turkish:Özgürlük ve Dayanışma Partisi – ÖDP) decided to change its name to the Left Party at the 8th Extraordinary Congress held in Ankara on December 22, 2019.[4]
Although after its foundation the leadership of the Left Party did not completely rule out the legacy of its predecessor (ÖDP), which was more inclined tolibertarian socialism andpolitical pluralism ideologically, the party tends to differentiate itself from the past.[5] It now adheres to the guiding principles of socialist politics (including public ownership, social justice, and equality), embraces the ideas and historical achievements of theMarxist andleft-wing revolutionary tradition in Turkey (more specifically, the party cadres consist of former militants and sympathizers of radical-leftDevrimci Yol movement in the 1970s), and included the elements ofleft-wing populism in its manifesto.[6]
In retrospect, neither the Left Party nor its predecessor ÖDP demonstrated significant electoral success in Turkey. The party has never been able to achieve a vote share of 1%, remaining far below Turkey's 10 percent national election threshold. Thus, it did not have any opportunity to be represented in the parliament as a party. However, the party launched and carried out several political campaigns to buildextra-parliamentary opposition in Turkey, often together with other left-wing groups and parties, civil society organizations and trade unions. Also, in different local elections, it had minor achievements in places likeHopa. Today, the Left Party has no single leader. Instead, it is ruled by the Board of Presidents consisting of four members (including Önder İşleyen [official leader], Pelin Bektaş, Çiçek Çatalkaya and İlknur Başer).
The party is a member of theParty of the European Left[7] and, up until July 2022, was nationally affiliated with theUnited June Movement[8] when it was announced, in a press conference in Ankara, that the party along with theCommunist Party of Turkey, theRevolutionary Movement and theCommunist Movement of Turkey would form a coalition for the 2023 national election, called theUnion of Socialist Forces.[9]
It was founded in 1996 as a merger of severalleft-wing groupings. In the1999 general election, its first major electoral outing, the party polled 0.8% of the vote, falling far behind the 10% threshold required for parliamentary representation. A deep internal crisis followed and by 2001, several of the initial groupings left. In 2002 elections, the party's share of the national vote fell further to 0.3%.
In the 2004 local elections, the ÖDP gained control of twotown halls inArtvin andYozgat provinces. In these elections, the ÖDP had joined an electoral coalition with the pro-Kurdish left-wingDemocratic People's Party (Turkey) (DEHAP) and the center-leftSocial Democratic People's Party (SDHP). At the next 2009 local elections, Mithat Nehir was the sole victorious ÖDP candidate in the entire republic (17,723 votes for the whole country, i.e. 0.04%), and became mayor of theSamandağdistrict.[10][11]
Ufuk Uras, who was then the president of the party was elected to the parliament from the independents' ticket, during the2007 general election. The party's formal lists, which hadn't fielded candidates in several key constituencies in support of the left-wing candidates standing on the independents' ticket, polled 0.15% in that poll.
In the 6th congress held on June 20, 2009, the delegates elected Alper Taş as the new leader, solely nominated as the chairmanship. Apart from the discussions on some political headlines, Party Assembly consisting of sixty people was also assigned. In this congress, the signals that the party will have a more anti-capitalist and anti-imperialist route were given.
Former chairmanUfuk Uras resigned from ÖDP on June 19, 2009, one day before the congress. During a press conference at Parliament, Uras said, “We are resigning together with the Freedom Left, who have worked in the founding of the party and held various positions at different times in the ÖDP – from provincial and district branch administration to membership in the party council, central steering and discipline committees – where we have been struggling since its founding for a historic meeting that overrides the existing structures.”
In the 8th extraordinary congress on 22 December 2019, the party changed its name to Left Party.[12]
The Libertarian Socialist Platform within the Freedom and Solidarity Party is a successor to theDev Yol radical left-wing movement.[13] Other minor groups areNew Way (USFI member), Liberation Movement (joinedSocialist Democracy Party in 2002),Odak that links toDireniş Hareketi (founded as THKP-C/Third Way and joinedSocialist Democracy Party in 2002), Socialist Labor Movement. Libertarian Left Platform, the tendency that was supportive of Ufuk Uras left the party with Uras in June 2009 and was one of the groups that eventually established thePeoples' Democratic Party.
| Election | Votes | Share | Seats | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 248,553 | 0.80% | 0 / 600 | Ufuk Uras |
| 2002 | 105,862 | 0.47% | 0 / 600 | Ufuk Uras |
| 2007 | 52,055 | 0.15% | 0 / 600 | Bekir Kemal Ulusaler |
| 2023 | 76,801 | 0.14% | 0 / 600 | Önder İşleyen |
| Election | Votes | Share | Number of Municipalities | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 264,136 | 0.84% | 2 | Ufuk Uras |
| 2004 | 12,379 | 0.04% | 2 | Hayri Kozanoğlu |
| 2009 | 67,984 | 0.17% | 4 | Hayri Kozanoğlu |
| 2014 | 59,842 | 0.13% | 1 | Alper Taş-Bilge Seçkin Çetinkaya |
| 2019 | Did not contest | |||
| 2024 | 72,124 | 0.16% | 2 | Önder İşleyen |
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European Parliament group:The Left in the European Parliament – GUE/NGL | |||||||||
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European political foundation:Transform Europe | |||||||||
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