And the representatives of the weaker sex received the full right to vote and be elected 4 years later. But back in 1933, women had the right to run for the post of mukhtar, and Gülkiz Urubül (aka Gul Esin) became the first female mukhtar in Turkey.

She defeated 7 male candidates for this position, banned gambling in coffee shops, made sure that children were enrolled in school and that girl brides were not kidnapped.

Today, out of 53,000 mukhtars (elected heads of villages and districts) in Turkey, 1,123 are women, according to the Ministry of the Interior.