Social Democratic People's Party (Turkey)

The Socialist People's Party (Turkish: Halk Partisi Sosyaldemokrat ), or " SHP ", was a left-wing social democratic party in Turkey. It was founded on May 24, 2002 by Murat Karayalcin. Karayalcin was 1989-1993 Mayor of Ankara and from 1994 to 1995, before the Turkish Foreign Minister.

History

After his retirement from the CHP he gathered a group of democratic and liberal socialists around, with whom he founded the SHP. In 2004 he ran again for the post of mayor of Ankara, Melih Gökçek but was defeated by the AKP. In 2004, the SHP formed an electoral alliance with the socialist ODP and the left, pro-Kurdish party DTP. She managed to put the mayor in several majority Kurdish cities. At the elections of 2007, they did not participate, not too strong to split up the left. By 2007, they presented two deputies in the Turkish National Assembly.

Former party chairman Murat Karayalcin joined the CHP again and ran for the post of mayor of Ankara in the local elections in March 2009. Again He defeated the incumbent Melih Gökçek.

At a party congress on 13 March 2010, the SHP decided to ve with the Eşitlik Demokrasi Partisi ( EDP) to unite and take over their name.