Over twenty parties are registered to participate in elections. Violence is largely absent from Turkish politics, and although the pitched street battles between the rightists and leftists that claimed over 3000 lives in the late 1970s are unlikely to happen today, bad blood does remain. Rashan Ecevit almost thwarted her husband's attempt to form a coalition between his leftist DSP and the far-right MHP when she publicly questioned the political motives of the latter following their placing second in the 1999 elections. Turkey is a member of NATO and an applicant to the European Union. Turkey's most renowned teams are the stanbul triumvirate of Galatasaray, Fenerbah e and Be ikta .
Clubs are present in every city and major town and are followed fanatically.
The national football hero is Galatasaray's Hakan Sukur, who generated major headlines in Turkey when Manchester United announced its interest in purchasing him. Food Turkish is one of the world's most varied cuisines. The kebap features sliced or skewered lamb meat prepared a number of ways and ranks among Turkey's most popular dishes. Seafood is more expensive than meat dishes, but the choices are great and the quality is often good. Turkish desserts are sinfully sweet and have to be tasted to be believed.