The Puerto Rico Research Hub recently conducted a poll of Puerto Ricans in Florida.
Who answered the survey?
The survey collected online responses from 271 men and women ages 18-85. Most were college-educated, employed, and married. 90% received no public assistance, most lived with families, and 60% were born in Puerto Rico. Among those who were not born in Puerto Rico, 56% were born in New York.
Most described themselves as happy, though 88% had skipped medical care because of the cost. About 41% had children.
77% plan to vote in 2024 elections, and among those who intend to vote, less than half expected to vote Democratic. 31% plan to vote Republican and 17% chose “other.”
Decisions
Respondents were asked which issues were most important to them in deciding whom to vote for in 2024. The single most important item was Education, but it was closely followed by economic issues and healthcare. “Wokeness” was far and away the least important factor, but climate change and abortion were also low priority. Researchers stated that these issues are the ones that candidates can expect to see resonate with this group of voters.
Most respondents had been paying attention to the election coverage at that point. The survey asked their opinions of the presidential candidates (at that time, Biden and Trump) and of Florida’s governor and senators. In every case, the largest segment chose “unfavorable.” Senator Marco Rubio received the highest “favorable” rating at 27%. Trump and DeSantis tied for the lowest “favorable” ratings at 14%.
About Puerto Rico
The survey asked several questions about Puerto Rico.
First, respondents were asked, “If a candidate for office endorsed statehood for Puerto Rico, would it make you likely to support them?” The answers:
- Somewhat more likely: 41%
- Much more likely: 31%
- Less likely: 18%
- Much less likely: 10%
Asked their preferred status option, respondents answered like this:
- Statehood: 49%
- Current status: 18%
- Independence: 11%
- “Modified Commonwealth”: 10%
- Free association: 7%
- “Something else”: 6%
67% described themselves as “very unlikely” or “somewhat unlikely” to move to Puerto Rico in the future, with just 6% saying they were “very likely” to do so, so we can assume that these voters are settled in their state. Nonetheless, they continue to care about the status of Puerto Rico and to prefer statehood over other options.
Residents of Florida will not have a vote in the upcoming plebiscite, nor in the final, federally-sponsored vote proposed in The Puerto Rico Status Act. This poll, like so many others before it in Puerto Rico and in the states, confirms that statehood remains the most popular option for Puerto Rico’s permanent political status.
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