Puerto Rico holds general election that promises to be historic

By DÁNICA COTO, Associated Press

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico is holding elections that volition beryllium historical careless of which of the apical 2 gubernatorial candidates wins.

If Jenniffer González of the pro-statehood New Progressive Party wins Tuesday’s election, it volition people the archetypal clip successful the island’s past that the enactment secures 3 consecutive terms.

If Juan Dalmau, who is moving for Puerto Rico’s Independence Party and Citizen Victory Movement, wins, it volition beryllium the first win for a campaigner not representing either of the 2 main parties that person dominated the island’s authorities for decades.

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

Trailing González and Dalmau successful polls is Jesús Manuel Ortiz of the Popular Democratic Party, which supports the island’s territorial status. Also moving is Javier Jiménez of Project Dignity, a blimpish enactment created successful 2019.

For decades, the New Progressive Party and the Popular Democratic Party would person astatine slightest 90% of each votes, but that began to alteration successful 2016, with newer parties attracting much voters amid economical and governmental turmoil.

A run poster promotes New Progressive Party gubernatorial campaigner and Puerto Rico’s typical successful Congress Jenniffer González, supra a run poster of nonmigratory commissioner campaigner Luis Villafañe, defaced with the Spanish words for corrupt and rogue, successful San Juan, Puerto Rico, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)

“That has been a precise large change,” said Jorge Schmidt Nieto, a governmental expert and assemblage professor.

Delayed results

Results are not expected precocious Tuesday, with analysts informing it mightiness beryllium a mates of days earlier that happens. During the 2020 elections, it took officials 4 days to merchandise preliminary results.

Puerto Rico’s State Elections Commission is inactive counting much than 220,000 aboriginal and absentee votes it received, with officials from assorted governmental parties noting the process is slow-going. The counting of those votes began much than 2 weeks aboriginal than usual.

Jessika Padilla, the commission’s alternate president, said successful a property league that immoderate 40% of those votes had been counted arsenic of Monday.

“This validation process is 1 that we are not going to instrumentality lightly,” she said.

More than 5,000 inmates retired of immoderate 7,400 full successful Puerto Rico besides person voted, though it’s unclear however galore of those votes person been counted.

The committee and different officials besides are inactive receiving allegations astir electoral crimes, including from radical who said they received confirmations for aboriginal voting erstwhile they made nary specified request.

Meanwhile, vigor generators person been dispatched to much than 2 twelve polling stations to warrant energy fixed the chronic powerfulness outages that person plagued Puerto Rico successful caller years.

A presumption question and a symbolic vote

On Tuesday, voters besides volition beryllium asked for a seventh clip astir Puerto Rico’s governmental status. The nonbinding referendum offers 3 options: statehood, independency and independency with escaped association, nether which issues similar overseas affairs, U.S. citizenship and usage of the U.S. dollar would beryllium negotiated.

Regardless of the outcome, a alteration successful presumption requires support from the U.S. Congress.

In addition, Puerto Ricans connected Tuesday tin enactment Kamala Harris oregon Donald Trump successful a symbolic ballot if they wish. While Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens, those connected the island are not allowed to ballot successful U.S. statesmanlike elections.

Nearly 2 cardinal voters are eligible to enactment successful Tuesday’s election, though it remains to beryllium seen however galore radical volition bash so. Voter apathy has dominated caller elections.