Gutierrez urges Puerto Rican vote

Posted by David Lightman at 8:29 a.m. CST

WASHINGTON -- For years, Puerto Rico's people and its politicians have been split on whether the island should become a state or retain a form of its current commonwealth status.

Although that division still persists in Congress, lawmakers Tuesday agreed on a new, important point:

If and when the people of Puerto Rico vote on the island's status, Puerto Ricans living on the U.S. mainland should vote, too.

That means that places where a large proportion of people from Puerto Rico live, such as Hartford, could become polling sites.

Any proposal regarding the future of Puerto Rico must first come from Puerto Ricans," said Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez, D-N.Y., chairwoman of the House Small Business Committee. And because many Puerto Ricans are relatively new to the mainland, and often intend to return home to live, she said, they should have a say in its future.

Puerto Rico's residents were given U.S. citizenship in 1917, and self-governing commonwealth status in 1952. But for years, many on the island have decried what they call its "colonial" status and have urged statehood or even independence.

Congress has deadlocked on whether to make a change, and plebiscites over the years have found residents divided on how to proceed.

Tuesday, however, with a bill introduced in Congress, a new push began that could eventually alter the island's ties to the mainland.

The bill's backers cited a number of reasons for including mainland voters. By supporting one plan or another regarding the island's status - statehood, independence, associated republic or commonwealth - they would be giving their representatives in Congress a sense of how their constituents felt.

Allowing such voting also would be a recognition of how times have changed since 1952.

"Half of the population lives on the mainland now. That was not the case back then," explained Luis Fortuño, Puerto Rico resident commissioner, who supports a different plan for island self-determination.

The bill, introduced by Velázquez, Illinois Rep. Luis Gutierrez, Puerto Rico Gov. Aníbal Acevedo-Vilá and others, calls for those born on the island, or with a parent born on the island, to vote for delegates to a constitutional convention that could determine Puerto Rico's status.

Some 3.5 million people, including at least 210,000 in Connecticut, would be in that category, though it's unknown how many would qualify to vote. About 4 million people live in Puerto Rico.

Polling places would be set up in areas with high concentrations of Puerto Rican voters, and states and cities could send delegations to the constitutional convention.

But congressional opponents, led by Rep. José E. Serrano, D-N.Y., and Fortuño, continue to have different ideas on how Puerto Rico can change its status.

They want people on the island, and the mainland, to participate in two votes. First, Puerto Ricans living on the island and the mainland would be asked if they backed a change in the island's status.

If a pro-change vote won, there would be a second vote later. At that point, the voters would be given three choices: statehood for Puerto Rico; changing the island's status to associated republic, where current residents would have dual citizenship and participate in some U.S. programs like Social Security; or independence.

But they agree that a big, inclusive vote is a good idea, not only because it would create a mandate for something, but because no one now knows what that mandate could be.

"There's no official data, no polls that can predict," said Betancourt."