The 6 December 'municipal elections' in the north of Nicosia are developing into a contest with broader political significance, with Mehmet Harmancı seeking a fourth consecutive term, now with the backing of the CTP, against UBP candidate Mehmet Aktunç and YDP candidate Ozkul Haraç.
CTP's decision not to field its own candidate and instead back the incumbent 'mayor' gives the vote the character of a political test, as the UBP attempts to reclaim the 'municipality' after 12 years of Harmancı's leadership.
Harmancı seeks fourth term
Harmancı has led the 'municipality' since 2014 and announced on 1 July that he would seek a fourth consecutive term. He said he considered it an honour to serve the residents of Nicosia for another four years, presenting the completion of ongoing projects as the main reason for his renewed candidacy.
His agenda includes the Pedieos-Kanlıdere river project, the Culture and Arts Building in the north of Nicosia, interventions in the walled city, and other projects still at the planning stage.
Harmancı's biggest political boost, however, came from the CTP. The party ultimately decided not to field its own candidate and to back the incumbent 'mayor' as part of its cooperation with the TDP for the municipal elections. Both parties present the arrangement as a continuation of the joint political stance they took during the previous 'presidential' election, and as a model for broader cooperation.
The decision has not gone without criticism. Turkish Cypriot media carried objections questioning how a party positioning itself as ready to contest the 'government' could decline to field its own candidate in the capital. Critics of the move also argued that the CTP was effectively ceding Nicosia to the TDP.
Cross-party appeal behind Harmancı's candidacy
The CTP's decision carries added weight in light of previous election results. In the December 2022 'local elections,' Harmancı was re-elected with 49.44% and 10,403 votes, despite the CTP having fielded its own candidate at the time, Sıla Usar İncirli.
İncirli won 26.41% and 5,556 votes, while UBP candidate Sadık Gardiyanoğlu was limited to 22.50% and 4,735 votes. Turnout stood at 52.92%, with 21,898 voters casting ballots.
That result showed Harmancı had managed to reach beyond the TDP's narrow party base. Turkish Cypriot analyses after the election noted he had drawn votes from both the CTP and UBP, single-handedly outperforming the combined vote share of his two main rivals.
UBP plays the change card
Against Harmancı, the UBP has chosen a new face: architect and the party's deputy secretary-general, Mehmet Aktunç.
Aktunç has sought to connect his professional background to his political message. In his early statements, he said that in more than 20 years of professional practice he had designed not just buildings, but neighbourhoods, workplaces and areas where people live and grow up. His message centres on the phrase "cities don't develop by themselves, they are designed." The UBP candidate has placed urban planning, transparency, meritocracy, proper use of financial resources and equal treatment of neighbourhoods at the centre of his campaign, under the slogan that "the capital will be governed as befits a capital."
Harmancı and the 'government' clash
Tension in the race was evident even before the official campaign period began. Ünal Üstel attacked the current municipal administration, arguing that after the period when the UBP governed the north of Nicosia's 'municipality,' "not one stone was laid on another."
Harmancı's response was notably sharp, offering a clear indication of how he intends to defend his 12-year tenure. He countered that the previous administration left behind a 'municipality' where staff went unpaid for months, professionals waited to be reimbursed money owed to them, and bank debts, he said, amounted to 80% of the budget.
At the same time, he highlighted investment during his own tenure in sewage systems and infrastructure, the women's shelter, and the 'municipality's' social programmes, arguing that the administration can now fund both its daily obligations and major projects from its own resources. His message to Üstel captured the tone of the emerging campaign: "We did not resort to populism, we rebuilt what you tore down."
The YDP candidate
Also in the race is Dr Ozkul Haraç, selected by the Rebirth Party (YDP), the settlers' party led by Erhan Arıklı.
According to the biography accompanying his candidacy, Haraç specialises in strategic and political communication, perception management, propaganda and cultural diplomacy, and has held administrative positions in education, energy, health and production.
