July 3, 2024
Contact: Comms@prstatehoodcouncil.org
Washington, D.C. – The Puerto Rico Statehood Council (PRSC) welcomes Governor Pedro Pierluisi’s (D-PR) announcement of a local non-binding plebiscite in Puerto Rico on the future political status of the island during the upcoming general election on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. This referendum is the first time in history that the options for the future political status of Puerto Rico will include the only available non-territorial options of either: statehood, independence, or independence with free association.
The three options that will be presented on the ballot for the upcoming plebiscite in November mirror the non-territorial options presented in the Puerto Rico Status Act (S.3231/H.R. 2757), which was introduced after the House passed the bill’s prior version in 2022 with bi-partisan support and received the endorsement of the White House through a Statement of Administration Policy. The Puerto Rico Status Act currently represents the only constitutionally viable status legislation seeking an end to the undemocratic territory status of Puerto Rico before the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives of the 118th Congress.
“The decision to hold this vote shows the pressing need to continue offering voters of all political ideologies in Puerto Rico a means to express their desire to end the island’s current territorial status and to put pressure on Congress to take action,” said George Laws Garcia, Executive Director of PRSC. “The PRSC supports this legitimate exercise of self-determination and unequivocally supports statehood as the best option for both Puerto Rico and the U.S. However, our main priority will be to continue to advance legislation in Congress to offer Puerto Rican voters a definitive and legally binding vote. In order to achieve this goal, it is paramount that Puerto Ricans continue the fight to advance statehood through every democratic tool available to us, which underscores the importance of this plebiscite.”
Achieving a binding vote that definitively resolves the status issue will require legislation to be passed through the U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Senate, and be signed into law by the president.
“Given that Congress has the sole jurisdiction to pass legislation to definitively end Puerto Rico’s territory status, the announcement of this local plebiscite further increases the need for hearings on the Puerto Rico Status Act to take place before November,” said Laws Garcia. “Holding a hearing now will not just provide accurate information to voters on the island regarding the constitutionally viable status options available outside of the Territory Clause, but also provide Congress the opportunity to refine and improve the federal legislation needed to implement the will of voters in Puerto Rico. The upcoming plebiscite is pressing Congress again to do their part in resolving Puerto Rico’s political status and honor the commitment to ‘government by consent of the governed’ that lies at the heart of America’s founding democratic values.”
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The Puerto Rico Statehood Council is a Washington, D.C. based, non-partisan, 501(c)4 non-profit issue advocacy organization. We are dedicated to advancing the goal of full equality and democracy for the U.S. citizens of Puerto Rico through statehood.