La Unión is a city and commune of the Ranco Province

Ranco Province

Ranco Province is one of two provinces of the southern Chilean region of Los Ríos . It is named after Ranco Lake shared by the communes of Futrono and Lago Ranco. The lake is drained by the Bueno River, on which basin lies most of the province...

 in the Los Rios Region

Los Ríos Region

The XIV Los Ríos Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions. Its capital is Valdivia. Pop. 356,396 . It began to operate as region on October 2, 2007. It was created by subdividing the Los Lagos Region in southern Chile...

 in Chile

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

. It is situated approximately 40 km north of Osorno

Osorno, Chile

Osorno is a city and commune in southern Chile and capital of Osorno Province in the Los Lagos Region. It had a population of 145,475, as of the 2002 census...

 and 80 km south east of Valdivia

Valdivia, Chile

Valdivia is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder Pedro de Valdivia and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia and Cau-Cau Rivers, approximately east of the coastal towns of Corral and Niebla...

. It covers an area of approximately 2136.7 km² and has a population of 39.447 of which 25,615 are considered part of the urban population (according to the Chilean Census 2002). The commune derived its name from the confluence of the Llollelhue and Radimadi rivers.

La Unión was founded in 1821 during the government of Bernardo O'Higgins

Bernardo O'Higgins

Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme was a Chilean independence leader who, together with José de San Martín, freed Chile from Spanish rule in the Chilean War of Independence. Although he was the second Supreme Director of Chile , he is considered one of Chile's founding fathers, as he was the first holder...

, to secure sovereignty over the Central Valley

Chilean Central Valley

The Central Valley , Intermediate Depression or Longitudinal Valley is the depression between the Chilean Costal Range and the Andes Mountains. The central valley should not be confused with Central Chile that encompasses part of the valley...

 south of Valdivia.

La Unión is a major centre for milk production. COLUN

Colun

Colun may refer to:*COLUN, a milk and milk derivatives company based in La Unión, Chile*Colún Beach, a beach in Chile west of La Unión*Colun, a village in Porumbacu de Jos Commune, Sibiu County, Romania...

 is the main milk and dairy product producer in the zone. Its products are milk, yoghurts and cheeses. The commune of La Unión can be divided into two areas, a western forest covered area in Cordillera Pelada between the beaches of the Pacific coast and the city of La Unión and an eastern part of open pastures and agricultural landscapes spaning Los Llanos

Los Llanos, Chile

Los Llanos is a historical term for the flatland area encompassing the Chilean Central Valley between Valdivia and Osorno. It includes parts of the communes of Paillaco, La Unión, Río Bueno, Osorno and San Pablo....

.

Demographics

According to the 2002 census

Census

A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

 of the National Statistics Institute

National Statistics Institute (Chile)

The National Statistics Institute of Chile is a state-run organization of the Government of Chile, created in the second half of the 19th century and tasked with performing a general census of population and housing, then collecting, producing and publishing official demographic statistics of...

, La Unión spans an area of 2136.7 sqkm and has 39,447 inhabitants (20,125 men and 19,322 women). Of these, 25,615 (64.9%) lived in urban area

Urban area

An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...

s and 13,832 (35.1%) in rural areas. The population grew by 1.8% (707 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.

Administration

As a commune, La Unión is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council

Municipal council

A municipal council is the local government of a municipality. Specifically the term can refer to the institutions of various countries that can be translated by this term...

, headed by an alcalde

Alcalde

Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An alcalde was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian cabildo and judge of first instance of a town...

 who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Hilda Carvallo Gómez.

Within the electoral divisions of Chile, La Unión is represented in the Chamber of Deputies

Chamber of Deputies of Chile

The Chamber of Deputies of the Republic of Chile is the lower house of Chile's bicameral Congress. Its organisation and its powers and duties are defined in articles 42 to 59 of Chile's current constitution....

 by Mr. Enrique Jaramillo (PDC

Christian Democratic Party

Christian democratic parties are those political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social teaching, and it continues to be influential in Europe and...

) and Mr. Gastón Von Mühlenbrock (UDI) as part of the 54th electoral district, (together with Panguipulli

Panguipulli, Chile

Panguipulli is city and commune in Valdivia Province, southern Chile, administered by the Municipality of Panguipulli. The town is known for its natural beauty and is called "City of roses" . Panguipulli is located on the western edge of Panguipulli Lake, and is on a moraine in the Chilean Central...

, Los Lagos

Los Lagos, Chile

Los Lagos is a Chilean city and commune in Valdivia Province, Los Ríos Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Los Lagos spans an area of and has 20,168 inhabitants . Of these, 9,479 lived in urban areas and 10,689 in rural areas...

, Futrono

Futrono

Futrono is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Futrono...

, Lago Ranco

Lago Ranco, Chile

Lago Ranco is a town and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Lago Ranco. It is located in Ranco Province in Los Ríos Region...

, Río Bueno

Río Bueno, Chile

Río Bueno is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Río Bueno. It is located in Ranco Province in Los Ríos Region...

 and Paillaco

Paillaco

Paillaco is a city and commune in southern Chile. It is located in Valdivia Province in Los Ríos Region, and is about 48 km southeast of Valdivia...

). The commune is represented in the Senate

Senate of Chile

The Senate of the Republic of Chile is the upper house of Chile's bicameral National Congress, as established in the current Constitution of Chile.-Composition:...

 by Andrés Allamand Zavala (RN

National Renewal (Chile)

National Renewal , is a liberal conservative political party belonging to the Chilean right-wing political coalition Coalition for Change in conjunction with the Independent Democratic Union and the Chile First movement...

) and Eduardo Frei Ruiz -Tagle (PDC) as part of the 16th senatorial constituency (Los Ríos Region).

External links

Municipality of La Unión