The governor of Istanbul (

Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...

: ''İstanbul Valiliği'') is the

civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

state official responsible for both national government and state affairs in the Province of Istanbul. Similar to the governors of the 80 other

provinces of Turkey Turkey is divided into 81 provinces (). Each province is divided into a number of districts of Turkey, districts (). Each provincial government is seated in the central district (). For non-Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan munic ...

, the

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of Istanbul is appointed by the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

and is responsible for the implementation of government legislation within Istanbul. The governor is also the most senior commander of both the Istanbul provincial police force and the Istanbul

Gendarmerie A gendarmerie () is a paramilitary or military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to " men-at-arms" (). In France and so ...

Appointment

The governor of Istanbul is appointed by the

President of Turkey The president of Turkey, officially the president of the Republic of Türkiye (), is the head of state and head of government of Turkey. The president directs the executive branch of the national government and is the commander-in-chief of the ...

, who confirms the appointment after recommendation from the

Turkish Government The Government of Turkey () is the national government of Turkey. It is governed as a unitary state under a presidential representative democracy and a constitutional republic within a pluriform multi-party system. The term government can me ...

. The

Ministry of the Interior An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, the ...

first considers and puts forward possible candidates for approval by the cabinet. The governor of Istanbul is therefore not a directly elected position and instead functions as the most senior

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

in the Province of Istanbul.

Term limits

The governor is not limited by any term limits and does not serve for a set length of time. Instead, the governor serves at the pleasure of the Government, which can appoint or reposition the governor whenever it sees fit. Such decisions are again made by the cabinet of Turkey. The governor of Istanbul, as a civil servant, may not have any close connections or prior experience in Istanbul Province. It is not unusual for governors to alternate between several different provinces during their bureaucratic career.

Functions

The governor of Istanbul has both bureaucratic functions and influence over local government. The main role of the governor is to oversee the implementation of decisions by government ministries, constitutional requirements and legislation passed by Grand National Assembly within the provincial borders. The governor also has the power to reassign, remove or appoint officials of a certain number of public offices and has the right to alter the role of certain public institutions if they see fit. Governors are also the most senior public official within the Province, meaning that they preside over any public ceremonies or provincial celebrations being held due to a national holiday. As the commander of the provincial police and

forces, the governor can also take decisions designed to limit civil disobedience and preserve public order. Although mayors of municipalities and councillors are elected during

local elections Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...

, the governor has the right to re-organise or to inspect the proceedings of local government despite being an unelected position.

List of governors of Istanbul

References

External links