section_path: Government and politics/Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality
section_name: Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality
paragraph_text: Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality
  
  Established in 1930 and restructured with the Metropolitan Municipalities Law of 2004, the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (Turkish: İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyesi) is the main citywide local government authority responsible for public works, water infrastructure, transportation, cultural services, and such. It is a remarkable employer in Turkey with an accumulated amount of over 80,000 personnel.
  
  The current city structure traces back to the Tanzimat reforms of the 19th century. Prior to that, local administration was held by Qadis, who were appointed by the Grand Vizier. Some religious cults and guilds also provided services for their communities. The Industrial Revolution, though Ottomans were not affected in a great extent, caused influx by foreign merchants as Constantinople was laid between two continents, and the imperial government signed bilateral trade agreements with many European countries, increasing the trade volume, especially with Eastern Mediterranean ports, such as Smyrna, Thessaloniki, Alexandria, and Beirut.
  
  In 1854, during the Crimean War, intensfying ties between the Ottoman Empire and other European powers has brought the reformizing Ottoman bureaucracy into implementing local government authority for Constantinople. The first local government authority, Şehremaneti, was inspired from the French commune system. Laws enacted after the Ottoman constitution of 1876 aimed to expand this structure across the city, imitating the twenty arrondissements of Paris, but they were not fully implemented until 1908 when the city was declared a province with nine constituent districts. Though Şehremaneti and its successors were disbanded by the Turkish Revolution, the system itself continued with the establishment of Istanbul Municipality in 1930.
  
  The Municipal Council of Istanbul is the legislative organ of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. Every five years, 314 local councillors are elected by popular vote. The council is the sole authority in matters regarding the municipality's jurisdiction, with an exception, UKOME (Transportation Coordination Center), which is partnered with central government agencies.