A Turkish court on Wednesday sentenced the mayor of Istanbul — the country’s most populous city — to two years and seven months in prison on charges of insulting members of Turkey’s Supreme Electoral Council.

Critics say the trial is an attempt to remove Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who is a key opponent of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, from office. Turkey faces presidential elections next year.

The court convicted Imamoglu of the charge and also imposed a political ban that could lead to him being removed from office.

The politician from the main opposition Republican People’s Party is expected to appeal against the verdict.

Imamoglu was elected to lead Istanbul in March 2019. His win was a historic blow to Mr Erdogan and the president’s Justice and Development Party, which had controlled Istanbul for a quarter of a century.

The party pushed to void the municipal election results in the city of 16 million, alleging irregularities.

The challenge resulted in a repeat of the election a few months later, which Imamoglu also won.

Imamoglu was charged with insulting senior public officials after he described cancelling legitimate elections as an act of “foolishness” on November 4, 2019.

The mayor denied insulting members of the electoral council, insisting his words were a response to Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu calling him “a fool” and accusing Imamoglu of criticising Turkey during a visit to the European Parliament.