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Like in all Finnish municipalities, the city council in Helsinki is the main decision-making organ in local politics, dealing with issues such as city planning, schools, health care, and public transport. The 85-member council is elected every fourth year by municipal elections.
Traditionally, the conservative National Coalition Party (Kokoomus) has been the biggest party in Helsinki's local politics, with the Social Democrats being the second biggest. In the 2000 election the Green League, for which Helsinki is the strongest area of support nationally, gained the position of the second most popular party. In 2004 however, the Social Democrats regained that position. Currently these three groups hold about 75% of the seats. In 2008 election, the Green League again became the second biggest party.
The Left Alliance and the Swedish People's Party both have some 7-8% of the seats. The latter's support has been steadily declining over the years, most likely because of the diminishing proportion of Swedish speakers in Helsinki. The Centre Party of Finland, despite being one of the three major parties in nationwide politics, only has little support in Helsinki like it does in most other big cities.
| Party | 2008 | 2004 | 2000 | 1996 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Coalition Party | 26 | 25 | 25 | 24 |
| Green League | 21 | 17 | 21 | 16 |
| SDP | 16 | 21 | 18 | 21 |
| Left Alliance | 7 | 8 | 7 | 6 |
| Swedish People's Party | 5 | 6 | 6 | 8 |
| True Finns | 4 | 1 | - | - |
| Centre Party | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
| Christian Democrats | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| Communist Party | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Independents | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
The Mayor of Helsinki is appointed by the city council. The post is currently held by Jussi Pajunen. He was appointed for a term of 7 years, starting June 1, 2005. Pajunen was a member of the city council for 8 years, and was the chairman of the city board in 2003-2005. According to local media, the three biggest parties in the council had agreed in the wake of the October 2004 municipal election that the mayor's seat will go to the Coalition party.
Current Deputy Mayors are Pekka Korpinen, Ilkka-Christian Björklund, Pekka Sauri, and Paula Kokkonen.
| Mayor | Term | Party |
|---|---|---|
| Arthur Castrén | 1921–1930 | |
| Antti Tulenheimo | 1931–1944 | Kokoomus |
| Eero Rydman | 1944–1956 | Edistyspuolue |
| Lauri Aho | 1956–1968 | Kokoomus |
| Teuvo Aura | 1968–1979 | Vapaamielisten Liitto |
| Raimo Ilaskivi | 1979–1991 | Kokoomus |
| Kari Rahkamo | 1991–1996 | Kokoomus |
| Eva-Riitta Siitonen | 1996–31 May 2005 | Kokoomus |
| Jussi Pajunen | Since June 1, 2005 | Kokoomus |