1998 Constantinopolitan general election (Queen of Cities)

The 1998 Constantinopolitan general election was held on January 11, 1998. The previous 16th Parliament had run to the end of its term under two separate coalitions, a center-left government under Mehmet Emiroglu (1994-1996) and a center-right one under Costas Antoniou (1996-1998). This new election crystallized the shift that had taken place over Constantinopolitan politics since the late 1980s. Under new leadership, the center-left New Way replaced the Socialists as the primary representative of the left of the political spectrum in parliament. This result signified the acceptance of neoliberal economic policies by the Constantinopolitan population after years of contention from the left wing. The results of the election were a landslide victory for New Way, which would form a coalition with the Socialists to form a new government under Meryem Asatryan. The right-wing Liberal Reform Party increased its share of the vote and its number of seats but found itself consumed by internal conflicts over the socially liberal policies of the Antoniou governments.

Electoral system
The 200 deputies of Parliament were chosen from a single nationwide electoral district with a 5% threshold.

Background
The previous parliament began with a coalition between the Socialists, the green Action Now! and the social-liberal New Way. Despite their promises of returning to pre-neoliberal economics premier Emiroglu failed to achieve much in matters of concrete policies as the ministerial portfolios of economic ministries were handed over to New Way members. As a result, the government rapidly became one of the most disappointing for its supporters as the anti-neoliberalism that was promised by the Socialists was not implemented. Instead, the country continued to liberalize the economy by privatizing state-owned businesses and furthering its integration with the European Union, which would eventually cause the breakdown of the ruling coalition.

Prime Minister Emiroglu's opposition to the entry of Constantinople into the European Union led, in April 1996, to the fall of the government after a resolution on European integration was adopted with the help of New Way. After two weeks, the social-liberal party would officially enter into a coalition government with the Liberal Reform Party, Costas Antoniou returned as prime minister for a fourth term. While, the new center-right government pursued liberal economic policies New Way forced Antoniou to increase social and health care spending while refraining from further tax cuts. Under the Fourth Antoniou Government the country entered final stages of negotiations with the European Union and the country's membership referendum was programmed for 1999.