Government

Turkey is a parliamentary democracy governed under the constitution of 1982. The president, who is the head of state, is elected by the legislature for a single seven-year term. The government is headed by the prime minister, who is appointed by the president. The unicameral legislature consists of the 550-seat Grand National Assembly, whose members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; a party must receive at least 10% of the vote to be seated in the assembly. Administratively, Turkey is divided into 81 provinces.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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