A county "(fylke)" is the chief local administrative area in Norway. The country is divided into 19 counties. A county is also an election area, with popular votes taking place every 4 years. The Sogn og Fjordane County Municipality was the government that oversaw the county. It was a group of 39 members who were elected to form a county council "(Fylkesting)". Heading the "Fylkesting" was the county mayor "(fylkesordførar)". The last county mayor for the Sogn og Fjordane County Municipality was Åshild Kjelsnes, the county mayor. She replaced Nils R. Sandal, who was county mayor from 2003 until 2011.