Mehmet Zeki Sezer (born 12 April 1957) is a
Turkish politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
and former chairman of the
Democratic Left Party (Demokratik Sol Parti, DSP), he was elected in the 6th ordinary party congress in 2004 after the resignation of
Bülent Ecevit
Mustafa Bülent Ecevit (; 28 May 1925 – 5 November 2006) was a Turkish politician, statesman, poet, writer, scholar, and journalist, who served as the Prime Minister of Turkey four times between 1974 and 2002. He served as prime minister in ...
.
Early years
Sezer was born in 1957 in
Eskişehir
Eskişehir ( , ; from "old" and "city") is a city in northwestern Turkey and the capital of the Eskişehir Province. The urban population of the city is 898,369 with a metropolitan population of 797,708. The city is located on the banks of the ...
. He graduated from M. Rüştü Uzel Chemistry
Vocational High School
A vocational school is a type of educational institution, which, depending on the country, may refer to either secondary or post-secondary education designed to provide vocational education or technical skills required to complete the tasks ...
and then from the School of
Chemical Engineering
Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials int ...
at
Gazi Üniversitesi in
Ankara
Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...
. He completed his 4-month short-term
military service
Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription).
Some nations (e.g., Mexico) require a ...
in 1983.
Early career
During his high school and university years, Sezer played
volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
for various clubs. He has a special interest in
art
Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas.
There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...
s. Sezer began his career as a
chemistry
Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...
technician in 1975 in the public service and later worked as a
chemical engineer
In the field of engineering, a chemical engineer is a professional, equipped with the knowledge of chemical engineering, who works principally in the chemical industry to convert basic raw materials into a variety of products and deals with the ...
. He worked also in the private sector in the same capacity.
Political career
His political career in the DSP started in 1988. Sezer served as an executive of
Çankaya branch of DSP, as deputy-chairman of
Ankara
Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...
branch and became a board member in 1991. He also served twice as the party's
secretary-general
Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...
. Between 2001 and 2004 he was the deputy chairman of DSP. In 2004 party congress succeeded
Ecevit. However, in 2009 he lost this post to
Masum Türker. In 1999, Sezer was elected as deputy of Ankara to the
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
and served as a minister of state in the 57th government under the
Prime minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Bülent Ecevit
[ Democratic Left Party]
Family life
Sezer is married and has two children.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sezer, Zeki
1957 births
Living people
People from Eskişehir
Democratic Left Party (Turkey) politicians
Leaders of political parties in Turkey
Government ministers of Turkey
Members of the 21st Parliament of Turkey
Members of the 57th government of Turkey
Gazi University alumni
Ministers of State of Turkey