| Canela | |
| Settlement Type: | Commune |
| Image Alt: | Canela Baja |
| Shield Alt: | Coat of arms |
| Pushpin Map: | Chile |
| Pushpin Map Narrow: | yes |
| Pushpin Label Position: | bottom |
| Pushpin Map Alt: | Location in Chile |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in Chile |
| Coor Pinpoint: | city |
| Coordinates: | -31.3989°N -71.4561°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: |  Chile |
| Subdivision Type1: | Region |
| Subdivision Type2: | Province |
| Subdivision Name2: | Choapa |
| Established Date: | 1891 |
| Named For: | Quechua sun sparkling |
| Seat Type: | Capital |
| Seat: | Canela Baja |
| Government Footnotes: | [1] [2] |
| Government Type: | Municipality |
| Leader Title: | Alcalde |
| Leader Name: | Juan Bernardo Leyton Lemus |
| Unit Pref: | Metric |
| Area Footnotes: | [3] |
| Area Total Km2: | 2196.6 |
| Elevation M: | 295 |
| Population Total: | 9182 |
| Population As Of: | 2012 Census |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Population Demonym: | Canelino/a |
| Population Blank1 Title: | Urban |
| Population Blank1: | 1744 |
| Population Blank2 Title: | Rural |
| Population Blank2: | 7635 |
| Demographics Type1: | Sex |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Men |
| Demographics1 Info1: | 4,737 |
| Demographics1 Title2: | Women |
| Demographics1 Info2: | 4,642 |
| Timezone: | CLT[4] |
| Utc Offset: | -4 |
| Timezone Dst: | CLST[5] |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -3 |
| Area Code: | 56 + 53 |
Canela is one of four communes in the Choapa Province of Chile's north-central IV Coquimbo Region. The capital is the town of Canela Baja.
As a commune, Canela is administered by a municipal council, headed by a directly elected alcalde. The municipal building (alcaldía) is located at Luis Infante Nº 520 in Canela Baja.[2] The commune is administered by alcalde Juan Bernardo Leyton Lemus (Independent-PC) from 2012 to 2016, who won the election with 50,21% of the vote against 41,15% of his nearest rival, former mayor Norman Araya Araya (Independent). The commune has a total of six councilors:[1]
Canela belongs to the 9th electoral district and the 4th Senate District (for that of the Coquimbo Region). It is represented in the Chamber of Deputies of the National Congress by the Members Jorge Insunza Gregorio de las Heras (PPD) and Luis Lemus (PS). Currently, Coquimbo is represented in the Senate by Jorge Pizarro (PDC) and Adriana Muñoz (PPD).
Canela spans an area of 2196.6km (1,364.9miles).[3] The commune is bordered to the west by the Pacific Ocean and to the north by three communes of the Limarí Province: Ovalle, Punitaqui, and Combarbalá to the north and east. To the southeast lies the commune of Illapel, and Los Vilos borders on the south. Canela Baja is located approximately 12km (07miles) east of the Panamerican Highway, Route 5, at kilometer 299.
The waters of the Canela stream flow into the Choapa River, which drains into the Pacific Ocean. The area's climate is steppe or semiarid. The average annual precipitation is about 169.51mm.
According to data from the 2002 Census of Population and Housing, the Canela commune had 9,379 inhabitants; of these, 1,744 (18.9%) lived in urban areas and 7,635 (81.4%) in rural areas. Thus, the Canela population represents 1.5% of regional population and 11.4% of the provincial population.