Who runs local government in Panama?

Panama has one tier of local self-government: 81 municipalities (called distritos, 2020 count), each with an elected mayor and a municipal council made up of the elected representatives of its corregimientos (sub-districts). Provinces are run by governors appointed by the president. Indigenous comarcas, such as Guna Yala, combine state structures with traditional congresses and chiefs.

Republic of Panama · Unitary presidential republic · Central America

The levels of government below the nation

Level	How it is chosen	What it does
Provinces (10)	Governor appointed by the president	Deconcentrated central government.
Indigenous comarcas at provincial level (Guna Yala, Emberá-Wounaan, Ngäbe-Buglé) and smaller comarcas	Traditional general congresses and chiefs (caciques) alongside state officials	Collective land ownership and internal self-government under their own laws.
Municipalities / districts (81 in 2020)	Mayor (alcalde) elected for five years; municipal council of corregimiento representatives	Local services, property and business taxes, local planning (Law 106 of 1973; decentralisation laws of 2009 and 2015).
Corregimientos (695 in 2020)	Representative (representante de corregimiento) elected for five years; community board (junta comunal)	Local works and services; the representative also sits on the municipal council.

Three questions about local power in Panama

Are local leaders elected?

Mayors and corregimiento representatives are elected with the president and National Assembly every five years. Governors are appointed. Comarca caciques are chosen by their general congresses.

Which laws set up local government?

Municipalities are in the Constitution (Article 232 on autonomy); comarca authorities are recognised in the laws creating each comarca. Neighbourhood committees are informal.

Who are local leaders accountable to?

Voters every five years; the Comptroller General. The Constitution allows the National Assembly to require some municipal officials to be appointed by the president in certain cases. Caciques answer to their general congresses.

Traditional and customary authority

In Guna Yala the Guna General Congress, with its chiefs (sailas and caciques), governs internal affairs, land and resources under the comarca's own fundamental law, and each island community has its own congress house. The Emberá-Wounaan and Ngäbe-Buglé comarcas have general congresses and caciques too. These authorities are formal because laws creating each comarca recognise them, but they must coordinate with national ministries. A National Council for the Integral Development of Indigenous Peoples (2018) brings traditional authorities and the state together.

Community and neighbourhood power

Each corregimiento has a junta comunal, chaired by its elected representative, with residents who help choose local projects. Neighbourhood committees and parent associations are common but informal.

Points to know

Municipal councillors are not elected separately: the council is made up of the elected corregimiento representatives.
Panama's first local elections under the 1972 Constitution were held in 1984.
Two small comarcas (Kuna de Madungandí and Kuna de Wargandí) count as municipalities.

Local terms

Corregimiento: A sub-district of a municipality, with its own elected representative.
Comarca: An indigenous territory with collective land rights and its own traditional authorities.
Saila: A Guna community chief who leads village congresses.

Sources

Panama: country profile (SNG-WOFI), OECD–UCLG World Observatory on Subnational Government Finance and Investment, checked 14 October 2026
Panama's Constitution of 1972 (rev. 2004), Constitute Project, checked 14 October 2026