Puerto Ricans voted to become the 51st U.S. state — again

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On Nov. 3, while Americans were voting in one of the most divisive presidential elections in modern history, Puerto Ricans decisively voted in favor of becoming the 51st U.S. state and elected pro-statehood Pedro Pierluisi as their governor. The statehood referendum was nonbinding — and yet could be consequential. With more than 3 million U.S. citizens, a population larger than that of 17 U.S. states, the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico has no empowered representation in the federal government.

After being hit by Hurricane Maria in 2017, Puerto Rico suffered an extraordinary economic and humanitarian crisis — and President Trump maligned the territory and its government. But with Joe Biden’s election as the 46th U.S. president and the possibility that Democrats may control the U.S. Senate, many Democratic policymakers have been talking about granting Puerto Rico statehood.
Legislators have introduced bills to admit Puerto Rico as a U.S. state before. Those don’t get far — in part because little is known about whether mainland American voters would support that initiative. Our study finds that both Republican and Democrat voters become more willing to support Puerto Rican statehood when they learn more about the island’s political status.

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