(Bloomberg) -- Ekrem Imamoglu, the man who defied Recep Tayyip Erdogan to take Istanbul, relied on an upbeat message in stark contrast to the type of rhetoric usually deployed by the president. That may be why he won more votes than Erdogan ever did in Turkey’s biggest city.As a former businessman and district mayor, Imamoglu was unused to the limelight before his candidacy in Istanbul’s election. After he was nominated to run as mayor, the 49-year-old waged an inclusive campaign and avoided criticizing Erdogan directly. After his victory in Sunday’s rerun, Imamoglu said he was ready to work with the president to tackle Istanbul’s problems, including transport gridlock and issues related to Syrian refugees.Building on his reputation as someone willing to work across political lines, Imamoglu ran on a message of unity: “Everything is going to be great,” was his campaign slogan. In a deeply divided Turkey, that fresh approach resonated with a wide range of voters from different political...
