Ward Politics

"Back, huh? Well you shouldn'ta spent so long at the Kidney, because you just missed the funniest thing I've seen since Antal's mum ran down the middle of Drunkard's Walk with her night kit on fire! You know the new fella in town, one that just opened up the tailor's shop? He comes in here demanding to speak to the Fonok. Says some ruffians came by his shop the other day. Said they were with the Black Knives and he owed them for insurance. 
"Now I know that ol' Szalai will be in pretty soon, and figure he'll be in the mood to have some fun, so I give the poor tailor some 'Yes, sir,' and 'No, sir,' and little bit o' the old 'what's the world comin' to?' and tell him to wait right here and the Fonok will be with him very soon. He's sitting there harrumphing like an imperial just stepped in dog shite when Szalai walks in and I give Szal the signal to just keep on walkin', then follow into the back to explain the scam. 
"A few minutes later, Szal comes out looking very serious and talks to the tailor in his very concerned voice, asking him to explain the situation. The tailor launches into his story and right as he's getting all wound up about the outrage to decency he's suffered, Szal takes off his gloves and reaches up to sagely stroke his beard. 
"Now of course the tailor sees the Black Knives tattoo on the back o' Szal's hand, so he starts stumblin' and stutterin' and finally just turns and high-tails it out of the hall. Right as he's walkin' out the door, Szal yells--still in his politician voice, mind you--'Don't worry, sir! I'll personally make sure my boys say 'please' and 'thank you' when they come back this afternoon.'"  

--Illyes Pal, Shadow Ward Hall Clerk

History

Before the coming of the Eternal Empire, the various Ward Councils in Khezvaros operated almost like independent city governments in their own right. There were some rights reserved for the Council of Lords and some Ward Council actions that required ratification by the noble council, but as a general rule they had enough power to ensure the smooth operation of ward business. The coming of the empire stripped away most of these powers, leaving the Ward Councils practically useless, at least officially. Today, their main responsibility is choosing Alders to serve in the Protectorate Assembly. Beyond that, their official operations mainly consist of dealing with squabbles between various constituents, organizing (and cleaning up after) festivals and similar events, and acting as advisors to the Alders.

Execution

Even though Ward Councils are extremely weakened compared to their pre-imperial counterparts, council hetmen still retain some power within the ward through their influence over the on-the-ground details of Protectorate Assembly initiatives--exerting control over who gets certain contracts or how imperial resources or are distributed within the ward, for instance.  Unofficially, they often have ties to influential martial and criminal organizations operating within the ward, which allows them to make demands of the citizenry that have nothing to do with their official duties. Some wards operate relatively honestly, focusing on finding loopholes that allow them to carry out their old roles (like Market's Wards habit of enacting various tolls and "usage fees" because they aren't permitted to levy taxes). Others rely purely on graft and corruption. 

Likewise, the methods by which council hetmen are selected and how they go about choosing Alders for the Protectorate Assembly is widely variable from one ward to the next. Some hold elections or caucuses with varying degrees of inherent corruption, others allow the existing council members to appoint new hetmen, and some councils are anointed by whichever faction truly controls the ward (the Black Knives' control over the Shadows council is the most unabashed example of this). The number of hetmen on the council, the drawing of the districts that are represented by these hetmen, and other specifics or council business are also administered by the ward council and differ considerably from one ward to the next.