Dilek İmamoğlu
Dilek Kaya İmamoğlu is a Turkish academic, author and activist. She is the wife of Ekrem İmamoğlu, the mayor of Istanbul and the Republican People's Party presidential nominee for 2028.
Early life and education
Dilek İmamoğlu was born on 18 November 1974 in Vakfıkebir, Trabzon Province, to a family of Turkish origin. She completed her primary education in Trabzon before moving to Istanbul for higher education. İmamoğlu earned a Bachelor of Arts in Tourism from Istanbul University and a second BA in Public Finance from Anadolu University. She later obtained a Master of Arts in Public Administration from Kadir Has University in 2016, with a thesis titled "The Relationship Between Glass Ceiling Syndrome and Organizational Commitment: A Research on Female Employees." İmamoğlu completed her PhD in Public Administration at Istanbul Arel University in 2022, focusing on "The Expectations of Generation Y from Leadership, the Impact of Democratic and Authoritarian Leadership Styles on Integrated Development."Career
As an academic, İmamoğlu has served as a lecturer at Istanbul Arel University, teaching courses on social responsibility. Her scholarly work emphasizes gender equality in the workplace and leadership dynamics. As an author, she published Cam Işığı Kesmez through Hümanist Kitap Yayıncılık, a book that explores women's societal barriers based on her master's thesis; all royalties are donated as scholarships for female university students.Imamoglu is a prominent activist for women's rights and disability awareness. In 2014, she collaborated with the Turkey Spinal Cord Paralysis Association, spending a day in a wheelchair to highlight accessibility challenges, earning the Şükrü Sürmen Awareness Award. She founded and leads the Büyüt Hayallerini scholarship project under the Istanbul Foundation, launched in March 2021, which has provided bursaries to thousands of girls and female university students through book sales and donations, including the anthology İlham Veren Adımlar. In October 2019, she was featured on the cover of Madame Figaro Turkey as the "First Lady of Istanbul."
Personal life
On 18 November 1995, İmamoğlu married Ekrem İmamoğlu, whom she met through family connections; the couple has three children: Mehmet Selim, Semih, and Beren. She is a member of the Republican People's Party.Early life and education
Dilek Kaya was born on 18 November 1974 in Vakfıkebir, Trabzon Province, the youngest of ten siblings. She completed her undergraduate degree in Tourism Management at Istanbul University and later obtained a second bachelor's degree in Public Finance from Anadolu University.She earned a master’s degree in Public Administration from Kadir Has University with a thesis on the “Glass Ceiling Syndrome”. In 2022 she received her PhD from Istanbul Arel University with a dissertation on Generation Y leadership expectations.
Career
İmamoğlu worked as a lecturer at Istanbul Arel University, teaching courses on social responsibility. In 2023 she published the book Cam Işığı Kesmez: Cam Tavan Sendromu ve Kurumsal Bağlılık Üzerine Bir Değerlendirme. All royalties are donated to the “Büyüt Hayallerini” project.Activism
In 2014 she received the Şükrü Sürmen Awareness Award for spending a day in a wheelchair to raise disability awareness.Since 2021 she has led the Büyüt Hayallerini project, which by 2025 had provided scholarships to over 3,000 female students.
Personal life
Dilek Kaya married Ekrem İmamoğlu in 1995. They have three children.Early life and education
Dilek Kaya was born on 18 November 1974 in Vakfıkebir, Trabzon Province, Turkey. She is the youngest of ten children. She completed her primary and secondary education in Trabzon.İmamoğlu earned her bachelor's degree in Tourism Management from Istanbul University and a second bachelor's degree in Public Finance from Anadolu University. She completed her master's degree in Public Administration at Kadir Has University with a thesis on the "Glass Ceiling Syndrome". In 2022, she received her PhD from Istanbul Arel University with a dissertation titled "Generation Y Leadership Expectations: The Impact of Autocratic and Democratic Leadership Styles on Integrated Development".
Career
İmamoğlu has worked as a lecturer, teaching courses on social responsibility and community service. In 2023, she published the book Cam Işığı Kesmez: Cam Tavan Sendromu ve Kurumsal Bağlılık Üzerine Bir Değerlendirme, based on her master's thesis. The royalties from the book are donated to the "Büyüt Hayallerini" scholarship project.Activism and social projects
İmamoğlu is actively involved in initiatives focusing on women's rights, disability awareness, and children's education. In 2014, she participated in a campaign with the Turkey Spinal Cord Injury Association, spending a day in a wheelchair to raise awareness about disabilities. For this, she received the Şükrü Sürmen Awareness Award.Since 2021, she has led the Büyüt Hayallerini project under the Istanbul Foundation, providing scholarships to female university students and organizing inspirational events.
Personal life
Dilek Kaya married Ekrem İmamoğlu in 1995. They have three children.Early life and education
Dilek Kaya was born on 10 November 1974 in Vakfıkebir in Trabzon Province. Although it was claimed that she was the youngest child in a family of ten siblings, it was denied by their daughter first and in another interview Kaya herself made it clear that she had three siblings. After graduating in Public Finance from Anadolu University, she pursued a master's degree in business administration at Kadir Has University and completed her master's degree at Istanbul Arel University in 2016. In 2022, she completed her doctoral study at Istanbul Arel University, which examined "the leadership expectations of Millennials, the impact of democratic and autocratic leadership styles on integrated development". She became a lecturer in social responsibility at Istanbul Arel University.Activism
Dilek İmamoğlu, accompanied by Semra Çetinkaya, Vice President of the Spinal Cord Paralytics Association of Turkey, traveled around Istanbul in a wheelchair for a day "to feel the difficulties experienced by the disabled and to raise awareness". In 2014, she won the Şükrü Sürmen Award by the Spinal Cord Paralytics Association of Turkey for her "awareness raising activities for disabled people".She played a prominent role in the protests following her husband’s arrest in 2025.
Istanbul municipal elections
On 31 March 2019, during the Istanbul mayoral elections, posts were shared on social media comparing her photos with Semiha Yıldırım, the wife of AK Party candidate Binali Yıldırım. She said: "I don't think such posts are well-intentioned. If they think they are insulting or flattering, they should know that they are insulting me too. Because when I look at Ms. Semiha Yıldırım's photo, I see my own mother, my own sister. This is their preference. Therefore, I do not find this post in good faith at all." Semiha Yıldırım thanked Dilek for this response.Women's rights
In October 2019, İmamoğlu was featured on the cover of Madame Figaro Turkey under the title "First Lady of Istanbul". In January 2020, Dilek İmamoğlu, together with Selvi Kılıçdaroğlu, the wife of CHP Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, attended the theater event of the book 'Devran' written by former Peoples' [Democratic Party (Turkey)|HDP] Chairman Selahattin Demirtaş. The meeting was criticized by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Nationalist Movement Party Chairman Devlet Bahçeli.In August 2020, Imamoğlu posted a video on her social media account in support of the Istanbul Convention with the hashtag "#IstanbulCovenantLives". For the International Day of [the Girl Child] in October 2020, Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality introduced a book titled Brave Girls' Companions , written by Aslıhan Dağıstanlı Aysev, featuring the stories of 30 Turkish women. In 2024 she wrote a book about the difficulties faced by businesswomen.