He was elected to the European Parliament with 25,051 votes, coming second among AKEL's candidates, behind Giorgos Georgiou. His election led to renewed controversy because he said that he will promote the Turkish language as an official language of the European Parliament (because it is an official language of the Republic of Cyprus). On the other hand, his supporters have repeatedly praised Kızılyürek's positions about a peaceful reunification of Cyprus and his explicit condemnation of the Turkish invasion and military occupation, as well as the ethnic cleansing and theft of property committed against Greek Cypriots since 1974.