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In addition to municipalities, two intermediate levels are defined. Municipalities co-operate in seventy sub-regions and nineteen counties. These are governed by the member municipalities and have only limited powers. The autonomous province of Åland has a permanent democratically elected regional council. Sami people have a semi-autonomous Sami native region in Lapland for issues on language and culture.
Health, social and emergency services are organised by the Wellbeing Services Counties. Finland has 21 Wellbeing Services Counties and the county structure is mainly based on the region structure. The County council, which is responsible for the operation, administration and finances of the welfare area, is the highest decision-making body in the welfare county. The delegates and deputy commissioners of the county council are elected in the county elections for a term of office of four years. Welfare districts are self-governing. However, they do not have the right to levy taxes and their funding is based on central government funding.[120]
The capital region – comprising Helsinki, Vantaa, Espoo and Kauniainen – forms a continuous conurbation of over 1.1 million people. However, common administration is limited to voluntary cooperation of all municipalities, e.g. in Helsinki Metropolitan Area Council.
The Constitution of Finland defines the political system; Finland is a parliamentary republic within the framework of a representative democracy. The Prime Minister is the country's most powerful person. Citizens can run and vote in parliamentary, municipal, presidential, and European Union elections.
Finland's head of state is the President of the Republic. Finland has had for most of its independence a semi-presidential system of government, but in the last few decades the powers of the President have become more circumscribed, and consequently the country is now considered a parliamentary republic.[4] A new constitution enacted in 2000, have made the presidency a primarily ceremonial office that appoints the Prime Minister as elected by Parliament, appoints and dismisses the other ministers of the Finnish Government on the recommendation of the Prime Minister, opens parliamentary sessions, and confers state honors. Nevertheless, the President remains responsible for Finland's foreign relations, including the making of war and peace, but excluding matters related to the European Union. Moreover, the President exercises supreme command over the Finnish Defence Forces as commander-in-chief. In the exercise of his or her foreign and defense powers, the President is required to consult the Finnish Government, but the Government's advice is not binding. In addition, the President has several domestic reserve powers, including the authority to veto legislation, to grant pardons, and to appoint several public officials. The President is also required by the Constitution to dismiss individual ministers or the entire Government upon a parliamentary vote of no confidence.[121]
The President is directly elected via runoff voting and may serve for a maximum of two consecutive 6-year terms. The current president is Sauli Niinistö, who took office on 1 March 2012. His predecessors were Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg (1919–1925), Lauri Kristian Relander (1925–1931), Pehr Evind Svinhufvud (1931–1937), Kyösti Kallio (1937–1940), Risto Ryti (1940–1944), Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim (1944–1946), Juho Kusti Paasikivi (1946–1956), Urho Kekkonen (1956–1982), Mauno Koivisto (1982–1994), Martti Ahtisaari (1994–2000), and Tarja Halonen (2000–2012).