1976 Constantinopolitan general election (Queen of Cities)

The 1976 Constantinopolitan general election was held on January 4, 1976. Thanks to the adoption of proportional representation this election resulted in the most parties entering Parliament in the country's history as 16 parties gained at least one seat in the chamber, solidifying the end of Constantinople's transition to democracy. Generally, the parties were split into four major groups that would wrestle over political control: the left (64 seats), the center (67 seats) and the right (32 seats). Additionally, the parties were also divided into "Republicans" (97 seats), "Nationalists" (51 seat) and "Moderates" (52 seats). Thus, over the next parliamentary term, the representatives of the three major parties from each group would attempt to form stable governments by allying themselves with two of the three wings. As a result, the 1976 election led to political instability and changes of the electoral rules for the next election.

Electoral system
The 1976 election was the first one to be conducted under the new electoral law that abolished first-past-the-post in favor of proportional representation. The new electoral system meant that all 300 deputies would be elected using closed-list proportional representation from a single nationwide constituency. The electoral threshold was 1/200th (0.5%) of votes to secure a seat. No mechanism was provided as to the registration of political parties leading to a record 134 parties to participate in the election. As a result of this number of parties, voters were given three separate ballots (with 50 options on each).

Context
The months since the previous election were marked by an alliance of all parties in an effort to repeal the legislation that made possible the Citizens' Front one-party rule. Under two different governments, the Parliament enacted electoral reform, reinforced laws on individual rights and began prosecution against the members of the Citizens' Party that had been indicted of breaching the Constitution, including sitting President Emre Dervish. While the democratization efforts enjoyed significant popular support, popular opinion grew irritated by the lack of significant economic reforms that would have alleviated the ongoing economic crisis. Over the course of the fall, left-wing proposals of increased public spending, salary raises and the implementation of new social programs were stalled by the 90-seat Citizens' Front.

Constitutional issue
Following the end of one-party rule the legacy of the Citizens' Front came under scrutiny as there was growing support for the adoption of a new constitution that would have made it more difficult to seize power. The main proponents of constitutional reform originated on the the left wing of the political spectrum before spreading to all major parties, calling for the addition of articles that would enshrine human rights as inviolable, establish the State's responsibility in matters of education and welfare, and reform of the policing and judicial systems. In addition constitutional reform, the left hoped to legalize abortion, abolish the death penalty and lower the voting age to 18. Some on the left even called for the introduction of multiculturalism, breaking with Constantinople's long history of monoculturalism.

Opposition to the project of constitutional was mainly concentrated among those that felt that a revision would endanger Constantinople's identity as a French-speaking universalist country. While the Citizens' Front was the only party that was entirely against reform, sections of centrist and right-wing parties also felt that a new constitution would benefit the left.

Over the months that preceded the 1976 election, polling on the adoption of a new constitution was almost evenly split, with the revisionist option gaining a slight advantage towards the end of December.