Politics In Depth
Archive Search
Will Puerto Rico become the 51st State?
March 27, 2006
The idea is increasingly gaining ground both in the mainland and in the Caribbean island.
Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Scan) Gabriela Perdomo - On Mar. 20, the United States Supreme Court ruled against granting Puerto Ricans the right to vote in presidential elections. The ruling was no surprise, but the news brought back attention into Puerto Rico's status in relation to the U.S.
(Angus Reid Global Scan) Gabriela Perdomo - On Mar. 20, the United States Supreme Court ruled against granting Puerto Ricans the right to vote in presidential elections. The ruling was no surprise, but the news brought back attention into Puerto Rico's status in relation to the U.S.
The island was a Spanish colony for centuries, until the U.S. invaded its territory and claimed it during the Spanish American War, in 1898. In 1952, Puerto Rico became a U.S. "commonwealth." Agreements reached at the time remain in place today. Puerto Ricans hold a U.S. passport and use American currency. They pay no federal income tax, but do contribute to programs such as Medicare and Social Security. They also receive some federal funds. Almost 4 million Puerto Ricans have no political representation in the U.S. Congress, except for one representative who is not allowed to vote in anything other than committees.
Puerto Rico is acknowledged as a "self governing territory", which means it elects a governor and legislature, but major decisions are still in Congress' hands. Puerto Ricans can be called by the American Army, which means they can fight for the country while being unable to elect their commander in chief. The island's democratic system is odd at best.
Independence is not an option for the majority of Puerto Ricans, though. The debate is more about whether the island should remain a commonwealth or become the 51st star in the American flag. In December 2005, a Congress taskforce established during the Clinton administration, which studies the Puerto Rican case, issued a report on the future of the commonwealth. The document recommends that Congress allow a referendum in order to ask Puerto Ricans if they want to remain a "territory" or become either an American state or an independent nation.
The report led to numerous editorials and statements from all sides, including one from Puerto Rico's governor, Aníbal Acevedo Vilá, rejecting the "pro-statehood" bill, saying that a referendum would be useless, because every time "Puerto Ricans vote, they vote commonwealth." In reality, the debate is as old as the commonwealth itself, at least inside the island. The issue has always been absent from the U.S. government's agenda— the last president to participate in a state visit to Puerto Rico was John F. Kennedy in 1961—but statehood advocates coming from within the Congress are definitely new.
There are very few public opinion polls available on this issue. From what can be gathered from the four unsanctioned referendums the island has held since 1967, opinions are almost evenly divided. In 1993, 49 per cent of participants voted in favour of the status quo, 46 per cent opted for becoming a U.S. state, and only four per cent chose independence. In 1998, 46.5 per cent of voters in another plebiscite supported statehood, while 50.3 per cent of commonwealth supporters voted for the "none of the above" option in a call to boycott the ballot. Less than three per cent wanted independence. In 2004, Acevedo, pro-commonwealth, won the governmental election against Pedro Rosselló, pro-statehood, by only 0.2 per cent of the vote.
The modest sympathy for independence suggests that the reasons for considering statehood are more economical than emotional for Puerto Ricans. The island's economy is not exactly thriving. According to Standard & Poor's, Puerto Rico has more per-capita debt than any American state. Puerto Ricans make on average $12,000 U.S. a year, half of what people from Mississippi, the poorest U.S. state, make. Unemployment is high and the public sector employs three of every 10 people.
If Puerto Rico became a state, it would have two senators and six members in the House of Representatives. Citizens would have to pay federal income taxes, but would receive about $5 billion U.S. a year in return. With political representation, they could get even more.
As for what Americans could get for luring Puerto Rico into the flag, the key might lie in the fact that Puerto Ricans could add a few million Democrats to the country. Which is why, among many other things, Republicans will almost certainly oppose granting statehood to Puerto Rico. Not that the process will start any time soon.