Puerto Rico To Vote On Becoming 51st State

NEW YORK, NY — Puerto Rican residents will vote Sunday on the question of whether to become the 51st state in the U.S. Even if this step is affirmed, however, the final decision about whether to accept the territory as a state is up to the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate.

Gov. Ricardo Rosselló of Puerto Rico favors statehood, which would provide the island residents with official voting representatives in Congress. Currently, the territory receives only one member of Congress who cannot vote. Puerto Ricans are also not eligible to vote for the president, though as U.S. citizens, they are free to move to another state where they could then vote. (For more information on this and other political stories, subscribe to the White House Patch for daily newsletters and breaking news alerts.)

Since the addition of Puerto Rico as a state would shift the balance of power toward Democrats, the Republican-held Congress is unlikely to assent to the request if Puerto Ricans decide they want statehood.

Statehood could potentially bring significant economic benefits to the country, which has struggled under a massive debt crisis in recent years. States have access to federal relief programs not provided to territories.

Some in Puerto Rico do not want the island to become a state, valuing the island's independence and decrying the United States' history of colonialism. The ballots cast on Sunday will have three options: becoming a state, remaining a territory or independence from the U.S. However, the vote is ultimately non-binding.

During the presidential campaign, President Trump said:

There are 3.7 million American citizens living in Puerto Rico. As citizens, they should be entitled to determine for themselves their political status. I am firmly committed to the process where Puerto Ricans might resolve their status according to Constitutional and Congressional protocols. I believe the people of Puerto Rico deserve a process of status self-determination that gives them a fair and unambiguous choice on this matter. As president I will do my part to insure that Congress follows the Constitution. The will of the Puerto Rican people in any status referendum should be considered as Congress follows through on any desired change in status for Puerto Rico, including statehood.

Puerto Rico first became a part of the United States in 1898 after the Spanish-American war; its residents became American citizens in 1917. The people have voted on statehood before, rejecting it in 1967, 1993 and 1998. A majority supported statehood in a 2012 vote, but nothing happened as a result.

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