The ousted leader of Turkey’s main opposition party called on Saturday for a new party congress to be held as soon as possible – in some 40 days – after a court ruling this week unseated its leadership, fuelling a political crisis.

A Turkish appeals court on Thursday annulled the results of a 2023 congress of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), at which Ozel was elected, citing unspecified irregularities. In his place, the court reinstated former CHP Chairman Kemal Kilicdaroglu, a divisive figure who lost to President Tayyip Erdogan in elections earlier that year.

“Everyone wants one thing: that the congress be held as soon as possible – within about 40 days,” Ozel told reporters.