Cantons of Costa Rica
Political subdivision of Costa Rica / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Costa Rica is administratively divided into seven provinces which are subdivided into 84 cantons, and these are further subdivided into districts. Cantons are the only administrative division in Costa Rica that possess local government in the form of municipalities. Each municipality has its own mayor and several representatives, all of them chosen via municipal elections every four years.
The original 14 cantons were established in 1848, and the number has risen gradually by the division of existing cantons. Law no. 4366 of 19 August 1969, which outlines the creation of administrative divisions of Costa Rica, states that new cantons may only be created if they have at least one percent of the republic's total population, which was 5,044,197 as of the latest estimate (2022).[1][2] The newest canton, Puerto Jiménez, was created on June 21, 2022, from the canton of Golfito.[3]
According to the latest population estimate from the National Institute of Statistics and Census, the largest canton by population is the capital San José with a population of 352,381, while the smallest by population is Monteverde with 5,386 residents. The same estimate listed the largest canton by land area as San Carlos, which spans 3,352.14 km2 (1,294.27 sq mi) and the smallest as Flores at 6.75 km2 (2.61 sq mi).[4]