28 elected mayors have been removed from office in Turkey.

Error detected

The claimed figure of 28 undercounts the actual number of elected mayors removed from office. Bianet, an independent Turkish news organization, reports that 31 opposition mayors have been removed from office since the 2024 local elections — a difference of approximately 10.7%, crossing the threshold for UNDERESTIMATED.

Omissions

• The MEP's original wording ('When this report was adopted, we denounced...') ties the figure of 28 to a specific past moment — the adoption of a European Parliament report — which could explain a lower count if removals continued after that date. The normalized claim, however, presents 28 as a general present-tense fact.
• The Stockholm Center for Freedom and Bianet figures both postdate the 2024 local elections and likely grew over time; the exact number at the moment of the EP report's adoption could not be independently verified with available sources.
• The Stockholm Center for Freedom's figure of 45 includes mayors who were jailed or suspended — broader categories than 'removed from office' — making direct comparison imprecise.

Sources

• SecondaryBianetThirty-one opposition mayors removed from office since 2024 elections. The removal of Esenyurt Mayor Ahmet Özer and Şişli Mayor Resul Emrah Şahan was based on allegations that they cooperated with a terrorist organization.
• SecondaryStockholm Center for FreedomAt least 45 elected mayors and co-mayors in 44 Turkish municipalities have been jailed, suspended from office or replaced by state-appointed trustees since the opposition's local election gains in 2024.