The departments of El Salvador are divided into 262 municipalities or municipios. The municipalities are listed below, by department El Salvador is divided into fourteen administrative divisions called departments, the equivalent of counties in the United States. Each department is administered by a governor appointed by the president. An alternate for each governor is also designated. Governors must be Salvadoran by birth, over twenty-five years of age, and residents of their department for at least two years prior to their appointment.