STATEHOOD OR INDENPENCE

Florida House GOP member becomes 100th sponsor of Puerto Rico Status Act
Emily Brooks
Fri, November 1, 2024

Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) signed on to the Puerto Rico Status Act this week, The Hill has learned, becoming the 100th sponsor of the bill.

The legislation would authorize a federally sponsored plebiscite for Puerto Ricans to resolve its political status, with a choice of independence, statehood or sovereignty in free association with the United States. Companion legislation in the Senate has support from 27 senators.

Mills’s addition to the legislation comes as the island territory has been thrust into the center of controversy in the height of election season after comedian Tony Hinchcliffe called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage” at former President Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally on Sunday.

Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) speaks to reporters as he arrives to the House Chamber for the final vote series of the week on Sept. 25, 2024.

But Mills’s office said his decision to join the bill was unrelated to the recent controversy and that he was considering joining before the comedian’s comments.



“I am honored to support the Puerto Rico Status Act as the 100th co-sponsor of HR 2757, which upholds the right of U.S. citizens in Puerto Rico to participate in a self-determination process,” Mills told The Hill in a statement. “This legislation is a significant step forward, authorizing a federally sponsored plebiscite that gives Puerto Ricans the choice between independence, sovereignty in free association with the United States, or statehood.”

A version of the legislation in the last Congress had 63 cosponsors and passed the House in 2022, but it stalled in the Senate. Only 16 Republicans voted in support of the bill that year.

Mills is the 15th House Republican to sign on to the 118th Congress’s version, though three of the GOP members who support the bill are delegates rather than full voting representatives.

“I am committed to this bill and look forward to supporting the choice of the Puerto Rican people,” Mills said. “There has been a strong historic bond between Puerto Rico and the United States. The bottom line is that Puerto Ricans serve in the U.S. military, they deserve at least the option of statehood.”

Puerto Ricans will hold a nonbinding referendum on Puerto Rico’s status Nov. 5 on statehood, independence or independence with free association.

A YouGov survey conducted Oct. 28 found that 59 percent of U.S. adults supported making Puerto Rico a U.S. state if its residents voted in favor of it.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. 

Poll: Puerto Ricans in Florida overwhelmingly support Harris, view Trump unfavorably

Syra Ortiz Blanes
Fri, November 1, 2024 

Kamala Harris Michigan Moore. Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally on October 28, 2024 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. 

The vast majority of Puerto Ricans in Florida back Vice President Kamala Harris’ White House bid and have a negative view of former president Donald Trump, according to a survey released days after a comedian made offensive comments about Puerto Rico at a Trump rally.

The Puerto Rico Research Hub at the University of Central Florida polled about 150 Puerto Ricans who predominantly live in Central Florida through an online survey in the last half of October. They found that 85% of those polled would vote for Harris while only 8% said they supported Trump. Six percent said that they would vote for an alternative candidate. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 8 percentage points.

Previous polling has also suggested that Puerto Ricans in the state broadly dislike Trump, though he did make inroads in 2020 in areas of Florida with large numbers of Hispanics, including people with roots in the American territory. Thursday’s survey results raise questions about whether comedian Tony Hinchcliffe calling Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage” at a recent Trump rally in Madison Square Garden could influence the outcome of some key swing states in a dead-heat race.

READ MORE: ‘Disgusted:’ Offensive remarks about Puerto Rico at Trump rally ignite furor in Florida GOP

The researchers said that they received a lot of responses to their poll after the New York City rally and noted the incident’s close proximity to Election Day.

“This might be a call for action for a lot of people that weren’t thinking about voting but now they have a reason to,” said Fernando Rivera, a sociology professor and the Hub’s director.

According to the poll, 88% of Puerto Ricans said they had an unfavorable opinion of the former president, compared to five percent who had a favorable opinion. Seventy-two held a favorable view of Harris and 10% held a negative opinion.

The researchers noted that despite that there are more than a million Puerto Ricans living in the state, there will likely not be a sizable impact on the presidential election in Florida. Trump is ahead in the state, according to several polls. But they said it remains to be seen whether the comedian’s remarks play a role in states where the race is tight, such as Pennsylvania, home to about 472,000 Puerto Ricans, and North Carolina, which has about 130,000 residents with roots on the island.

The survey also found that Puerto Ricans are also politically engaged in the presidential race, with 69% saying they are paying a lot of attention to developments.

“How ironic it would be that the Puerto Rican vote has the potential to become the October surprise. But obviously, we will see what is the impact of this,” Rivera said. “There’s a lot of communication between Puerto Ricans here and Puerto Ricans in other battleground states such as Pennsylvania.”

The researchers received responses throughout the state, including in areas where there is a high concentration of Puerto Ricans such as Orange, Osceola, Seminole and Hillsborough counties. Dr. Sara Belligoni, a postdoctoral scholar at the Puerto Rican Research Hub, said that the sample of people surveyed had a good representation of age, gender, employment status and location. She noted that most of those surveyed had a bachelor’s degree or above, and the majority were also born in Puerto Rico.

Issues that ranked as important for those surveyed included education, healthcare, cost of living, abortion and reproductive rights. But the researchers noted that policy priorities within Puerto Rican communities can vary depending on when they arrived in Florida or whether they had come from Puerto Rico or another state.

The Trump campaign previously told the Miami Herald in a statement that Hinchcliffe’s joke about Puerto Rico does not “reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.”

The Harris campaign has capitalized on the comedian’s comments as an opportunity to court voters with roots on the island. While Trump was at the rally in New York, Harris met with Puerto Rican voters in Pennsylvania. She also released her policy plans for Puerto Rico that day, which included fostering economic growth, increasing affordable housing and supporting small businesses.

This week, the Harris campaign released a Spanish-language ad featuring a narrator with a Puerto Rican accent. The ad rejects the floating garbage island comparisons, uses Puerto Rican lingo and protest chants, and shows images of notable Puerto Ricans throughout history.

“On Nov. 5, Trump will understand that one man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” the narrator says, while the ad displays photos of the former president throwing paper towels into a crowd while visiting Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. Many people on the island and across the United States viewed that moment as demeaning and insulting.

Several high-profile Puerto Ricans, including celebrities Ricky Martin, Bad Bunny, and Luis Fonsi, have come out in support of Harris in the days after Hinchcliffe’s remarks. On Thursday, actress and singer Jennifer Lopez opened for the vice president at a rally in Nevada, another swing state. She spoke in support of Harris’ platform and told the audience that Trump at Madison Square Garden “reminded us who he really is and how he really feels.”

“It wasn’t just Puerto Ricans who were offended that day. It was every Latino in this country, it was humanity, and anyone of decent character,” she added.

It is not the first time that Trump comes under fire for offensive comments about the American territory. A former Homeland Security official said Trump once wondered whether Puerto Rico could be swapped for Greenland and described the island as “dirty” and its people “poor.” The Trump administration set onerous restrictions on billions of disaster funds after Hurricane Maria over concerns of mismanagement, slowing down the disbursement of recovery relief. Trump has also previously called Puerto Rico “one of the most corrupt places on earth.”

In the poll, just over half of Puerto Ricans were registered Democrats, while 38% had no party affiliation. Eight percent identified as Republicans. Many Democrats hoped they would gain new voters after a massive influx of Puerto Ricans came to Florida after Maria. But they have since said that Puerto Ricans were not as reliable a Democratic as they expected. Thursday’s poll found that despite most of those surveyed identifying as Democrats, 85% of Puerto Ricans support candidates for reasons other than party affiliation.

Puerto Rico prepares for Election Day as a third-party candidate makes history

DÁNICA COTO
Sat, November 2, 2024

A campaign poster promoting the Puerto Rico’s Independence Party and the Citizen Victory Movement gubernatorial candidate Juan Dalmau, is displayed on an electrical box in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)ASSOCIATED PRESS

A supporter waves a Puerto Rican Independence Party flag while holding a campaign poster promoting the Citizens' Victory Movement mayoral candidate Manuel Natal, during a caravan in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)ASSOCIATED PRESS

A campaign poster promotes New Progressive Party gubernatorial candidate and Puerto Rico’s representative in Congress Jenniffer González, above a campaign poster of resident commissioner candidate Luis Villafañe, defaced with the Spanish words for corrupt and rogue, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)ASSOCIATED PRESS

A billboard promoting Puerto Rico’s Independence Party and the Citizen Victory Movement gubernatorial candidate Juan Dalmau towers over a highway, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024.(AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)ASSOCIATED PRESS

A view of La Perla neighborhood in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo by Alejandro Granadillo)ASSOCIATED PRESS


SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The two parties that have dominated Puerto Rican politics for decades are losing their grip as they face the stiffest competition yet from a younger generation fed up with the island’s corruption, chronic power outages and mismanagement of public funds.

For the first time in the island's governor's race, a third-party candidate has a powerful second lead in the polls ahead of the U.S. territory's election Tuesday — and some experts say there’s a possibility he could win.

“This election is already historic,” said political analyst and university professor Jorge Schmidt Nieto. “It already marks a before and an after.”



Juan Dalmau is running for Puerto Rico’s Independence Party and the Citizen Victory Movement, established in 2019. A Gaither international poll this month shows Dalmau closing in on Jenniffer González, a member of the New Progressive Party and Puerto Rico’s representative in Congress. She beat Gov. Pedro Pierluisi in their party’s primary in June.

Gaither’s poll shows Dalmau with 29% of support versus González’s 31% as he nearly caught up with her since a different poll in July showed him with only 24% compared with González’s 43%. Coming in third was Jesús Manuel Ortiz, of the Popular Democratic Party, followed by Javier Jiménez of Project Dignity, a conservative party created in 2019.

Under pressure

Puerto Rican politics revolve around the island's status, and up until 2016, the New Progressive Party, which supports statehood, and the Popular Democratic Party, which supports the status quo, would split at least 90% of all votes during general elections, Schmidt said.



But that year, U.S. Congress created a federal control board to oversee Puerto Rico’s finances after the government announced it was unable to pay a more than $70 billion public debt load. In 2017, Puerto Rico filed for the biggest U.S. municipal bankruptcy in history.

The debt was accrued through decades of corruption, mismanagement and excessive borrowing, with Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority still struggling to restructure its more than $9 billion debt, the largest of any government agency.

Puerto Ricans have largely rejected and resented the board, created a year before Hurricane Maria slammed into the island as a powerful Category 4 storm, razing the electrical grid.

In 2020, Pierluisi won but received only 33% of votes. His opponent from the Popular Democratic Party received 32%. It marked the first time either party failed to reach 40% of votes.



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The power outages that have persisted since the elections, coupled with the slow pace of hurricane reconstruction, have frustrated and angered voters. Under Pierluisi, the government signed contracts with two companies, Luma Energy and Genera PR, which together oversee the generation, transmission and distribution of power. Outages have persisted, with the companies blaming a grid that was already crumbling before the hurricane hit due to a lack of maintenance and investment.

“Disastrous things have occurred during this four-year term, especially with the electric energy,” Schmidt said. “It has affected everyone, regardless of social class.”

Voters, he said, are viewing Tuesday’s elections “as a moment of revenge.”

Dalmau said he would oust both companies in an “organized fashion” within six months if he becomes governor. Ortiz said he would cancel Luma’s contract, while González has called for the creation of an “energy czar” that would review potential Luma contractual breaches while another operator is found.

However, no contract can be canceled without prior approval of the federal control board and Puerto Rico’s Energy Bureau.

The candidates also are under pressure to create affordable housing, lower power bills and the general cost of living, reduce violent crimes, boost Puerto Rico’s economy, with the island locked out of capital markets since 2015, and improve a crumbling health care system as thousands of doctors flock to the U.S. mainland.

Dalmau, who suspended his campaign for two weeks in mid-October after his wife had emergency brain surgery, also has said he would eliminate tax breaks for wealthy U.S. citizens from the mainland.

Apathy dominates

Despite their promises to turn Puerto Rico around, candidates face persistent voter apathy.

In 2008, 1.9 million out of 2.5 million registered voters participated in that year’s election, compared with 1.3 million out of 2.3 million in 2020.

This year, nearly 99,000 new voters registered and more than 87,000 reactivated their status, according to Puerto Rico’s State Elections Commission.

“A much higher number was expected,” Schmidt said.

He noted that those middle age and older favor González and her pro-statehood party, while those younger than 45 “overwhelmingly” favor Dalmau, which means that if a majority of young voters participate on Tuesday and fewer older ones do so, he might have a chance of winning.

The Bad Bunny factor

The months leading up to the Nov. 5 elections have been contentious.

Reggaetón superstar Bad Bunny paid for dozens of billboard ads criticizing Puerto Rico’s two main parties. In response, the governor’s New Progressive Party financed a billboard ad suggesting an obscenity in reference to Bad Bunny.

On Friday, the singer published a page-long letter in a local newspaper deriding González's pro-statehood party.

While the artist has not endorsed any local officials, the sole person he recently began following on Instagram was Dalmau.

Meanwhile, a so-called “cemetery of corruption” was set up Thursday in the capital, San Juan, featuring large black-and-white pictures of nearly a dozen politicians from the island’s two main parties who have been charged or sentenced by federal authorities in recent years. It was created by Eva Prados with the Citizen Victory Movement, who is running for Puerto Rico's House. By Friday, police reported that the pictures were destroyed or stolen.


As the race heats up, the number of formal complaints about alleged electoral crimes also has increased. These include people who say they received confirmations for early voting when they made no such request.

A persistent question

Voters on Tuesday also will be asked for a seventh time what Puerto Rico’s political status should be.

The nonbinding referendum will feature three choices: statehood, independence and independence with free association, under which issues like foreign affairs, U.S. citizenship and use of the U.S. dollar would be negotiated.

Regardless of the outcome, a change in status requires approval from the U.S. Congress.

“For a lot of people, it’s a demoralizing exercise to vote in a non-binding referendum,” said Christina Ponsa-Kraus, a professor at Columbia Law School. “The reason Puerto Ricans have voted seven times is that every time they vote, Congress doesn’t do anything.”

The push for a change in status doesn’t depend on whether Kamala Harris or Donald Trump win in the U.S. mainland.

“The stakes are more than just who becomes president, but who is in control of Congress,” Ponsa-Kraus said as she called on Congress to offer Puerto Rico “non-colonial options.”

She added that it’s hard to say whether the gubernatorial run by Dalmau, who has long represented Puerto Rico’s Independence Party, would affect the plebiscite vote.



“My sense is that … people can distinguish between a candidate and a status option,” she said. “I believe that Puerto Ricans have historically not supported independence because they do not want to lose their citizenship, and they do not want to lose the ability to move back and forth freely between the mainland United States and the island.”

____

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america


Jennifer Lopez Says ‘Every Latino in This Country’ Offended by Trump’s MSG Rally

Storyful
Fri, November 1, 2024 


Jennifer Lopez, campaigning with Kamala Harris on October 31 in Nevada, said Donald Trump’s campaign had offended “every Latino in this county” following his rally at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.

Trump’s rally in New York saw a comedian Tony Hinchcliffe mock Puerto Rico, describing the island as “a floating island of garbage.”

Lopez, whose parents were born in Puerto Rico, said: “At Madison Square Garden, he reminded us who he really is and how he really feels. It wasn’t just Puerto Ricans who were offended that day, okay? It was every Latino in this country, it was humanity and anyone of decent character.”


A number of other Puerto Rican celebrities like Lopez have also been critical of Trump in recent days. Reggaeton star Nicky Jam withdrew his support for Trump just a month after endorsing the Republican candidate.

Bad Bunny, one of the world’s biggest Latin music stars, posted a video with his 45 million Instagram that threw support behind Harris. 

Video Transcript

Buenos, not Las Vegas.

Now, you guys know I'm no stranger to this town.

No, I've been on stage here many, many times.

Too many times to count.

But this is the most important stage I've ever been on.

And let me tell you, it has never felt the way it does tonight.



It has nothing to do with me and everything to do with you.

The energy in here is just electric.

Do you feel it?

It's amazing this, the election is just five days away and there's so much at stake.

The choices facing America now are monumental and you guys have made this place a city where dreams come true where people from all walks of life have planted a flag in hopes of creating a better future for themselves and their families.

And you are the ones who are going to send the message that Nevada is Harris country.

Kamala Harris is running for the people who dream for the parents working overtime, the kids studying by street light, the teenagers practicing in the basement.


She's the only candidate that wants to raise the minimum wage and make college more affordable.

Keep the department of education and even put a teacher in the vice president's job.

On the other hand, her opponent wants to kill the Affordable Care Act and eliminate the Department of Education right now.

We are on the brink of an election that demands a choice, a choice between backwards and forwards, a choice between the past and the future.

A choice between divided and united.

And if you are anything like me and you value the idea that in this country, any child from any background can not only work their ass off to bring their dreams to life and be able to do so with dignity and respect for their neighbors.



Then it isn't much of a choice at all.

Whether you're from Castle Hill in the Bronx.

Yes, baby or Sunrise Manor in East Las Vegas.

We all want a world where our kids feel safe and free and valued by their president because whoever leads this country matters, that's how we make the greatest America.

Because I remember, I remember growing up thinking my president cared about me, cared about my parents, cared about my neighbors and my community, not just some Americans, but all Americans.

I believe that our kids and this wonderfully progressive, innovative and inclusive young generation deserve that too.



And it is in our hands, it's in, it's our responsibility to provide that for them.

You know, when I started in TV, and film, I could get roles playing the maid or the loudmouth Latina but I knew I had more to offer.

And I think there are a lot of people in this country who feel the same way who know that they are capable of more and we all just want a chance to prove it.

And elections are about choosing leaders who support that.

Not one who stands in the way.

Kamala Harris gets it raised by a hard working mother in Oakland, California.

Working long hours, strict budget made rent every month until they could buy a home surrounded by a community of firefighters and teachers, nurses, construction workers, small business owners.



I don't know.

That sounds a lot like my upbringing and probably many of yours, Kamala Harris gets it.

I know as president of the United States, Kamala will fight for our freedom, the freedom of immigrants and immigrant families to chase the American dream, the freedom of workers to afford housing education, food and life's essentials and the freedom of women to choose what we do with our bodies.

I believe in the power of women.

Ladies, where are my ladies at?

I believe that women, women have the power to make the difference in this election.

I believe in the power of Latinos where my Latinos at, I believe in the power of our community.



I believe in the power of all our votes.

I believe that together we are the difference in this election.

I know that together we are the difference in this election.

Kamala Harris chose a career in law to fight for middle class families like her own from her start as a courtroom prosecutor to becoming the district attorney.

Then California's attorney general, then a US senator and now as vice president, she, she has only ever had one client.

You the people.

And in each of those roles she took on scammers who ripped off their customers, predators who abused women and cheaters who broke the rules for their own gain.



There is no candidate in the history of the presidency that is more qualified and there is no job that Kamala Harris can't do.

Kamala Harris gets it and that's what her policies are about.

She will put forward an actual plan to make housing more affordable, to cut taxes for middle class families, to help small businesses get a foothold to expand the child tax credit, to fight inflation by cracking down on grocery monopolies to take on those who rip off consumers.

And what's that all about?

At the end of the day?

It's about helping you get ahead.

It's about you and you and you, and you and you.

It's about us, all of us no matter what we look like who we love or who we worship or where we're from.



Her opponent.

On the other hand, doesn't see it that way.

He has consistently worked to divide us at Madison Square Garden.

He reminded us who he really is and how he really feels.

It wasn't just Puerto Ricans that were offended that day.

OK?

It was every Latino in this country.

It was humanity and anyone of decent character.

Look, you, you go, you, I'm a lover.

You guys know that about me.

I'm a lover.

I am not a fighter.

I am not here to trash anyone or bring them down.

I know what that can feel like and I wouldn't do it to my worst enemy or even when facing the biggest adversary, I think America has internally ever had.

But over Kamala Harris's entire career, she has proven us to us who she is.

She has shown up for us every day for the people and it's time for us to show up for her.

It's time for, for us to all answer presente.

I am an American woman.

I am the daughter of Guadalupe Rodriguez and David Lopez, a proud daughter and son of Puerto Rico.

I am Puerto Rican soy boricua Carajo.

And yes, I was born here and we are Americans.

I'm a mother, I am a sister.

I am an actor and an entertainer.

And I like Hollywood endings.

I like when the good guy or in this case, the good girl wins.

And with an understanding of our past and a faith in our future, I will be casting my ballot for Kamala Harris for president of the United States.

You can't even spell American without Regan.

This is our country too and we, we must exercise our right to vote on November 5th, please.

And remember Somos Una Naion Bajo Dios indivisibly.

Con Libertad I Eia parados.

Let's get, yeah, I promised myself I wouldn't get emotional.

But you know what, you know what?

We should be emotional.

We should be upset.

We should be scared and outraged.

We should, our pain matters.

We matter, you matter, your voice and your vote matters and, and look, don't be afraid to make people around you uncomfortable.

Invite people around you to be the change to go out there and vote.

Nobody likes having tough conversations or talking about politics.

But trust me, I've been in some of these rooms.

I see the way power works in this country.

They love it when you do nothing.

Ok?

A non vote is an agreement.

It just makes it easier easier for them to do whatever they want, whatever serves them.

And this election is about your life.

It's about you and me and my kids and your kids don't make it easy.

Make them pay attention to you.

That's your, that's your power.

Your vote is your power.

Make a plan to vote early.

Ok?

If you, if you have a mail ballot sign the envelope, return it to any dropbox in your county.

It is too late to put it in the mail.

Ok, tomorrow Friday, November 1st is the last day to vote early in person.

If you can't vote early, make a plan to vote on election day.

November 5th.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Find a vote center or ballot dropbox near you at Will vote.com/nv.

I will vote.

I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I will vote.

You are absolutely right.

I'm sorry, I got carried away.

Let's do this.

Las Vegas.

I am so proud of all of you for showing up today.

Thank you so much and it is my deep honor to introduce a woman who has the opportunity in just a few days to make history.