Editing Politics of Puerto Rico (section)

=== 21st Century===
According to a December 2005 report by the [[President's Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status]], it is not possible "to bind future (U.S.) Congresses to any particular arrangement for Puerto Rico as a Commonwealth".<ref name=status /> This determination was based on articles in the [[U.S. Constitution]] regarding territories. Prominent leaders in the pro-statehood and pro-independence political movements agree with this assessment. In 2005 and 2007, two reports were issued by the U.S. President's Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status.<ref name=status>{{cite web|url=http://charma.uprm.edu/~angel/Puerto_Rico/reporte_status.pdf|title=Report by the President's task force on Puerto Rico's Status|date=December 2005|access-date=2007-10-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070925184244/http://charma.uprm.edu/~angel/Puerto_Rico/reporte_status.pdf|archive-date=September 25, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=status2007>{{cite web|url=http://www.primerahora.com/XStatic/primerahora/docs/espanol/whitehousestatusreport.pdf|title=Report by the President's task force on Puerto Rico's Status|date=December 2007|access-date=2007-12-24|archive-date=February 16, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216013058/http://www.primerahora.com/XStatic/primerahora/docs/espanol/whitehousestatusreport.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> Both reports conclude that Puerto Rico continues to be a territory of U.S. under the plenary powers of the U.S. Congress.<ref name=status2007 /> Reactions from Puerto Rico's two major political parties were mixed. The Popular Democratic Party (PPD) challenged<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=Puerto rico labor laws and regulations handbook : strategic information and basic laws.|date=2009|publisher=International Business Publications USA|isbn=978-1-4387-8149-5|location=[Place of publication not identified]|pages=22|oclc=946207080}}</ref> the task force's report and committed to validating the current status in all international forums, including the [[United Nations]]. It also rejects<ref name=":0" /> any "colonial or territorial status" as a status option, and vows to keep working for the enhanced Commonwealth status that was approved by the PPD in 1998 which included sovereignty, an association based on "respect and dignity between both nations", and common citizenship.<ref>[http://www.puertorico-herald.org/issues/vol2n11/indep-hearing-v2n11.html Independence Hearing] by the ''Puerto Rico Herald''.</ref> The New Progressive Party (PNP) supported<ref name=":0" /> the [[White House]] Report's conclusions and supported bills to provide for a democratic referendum process among Puerto Rico voters.<ref name=status2007/> It stated that the [[United States Department of Justice|U.S. Justice Department]] in 1959 reiterated that Congress held power over Puerto Rico pursuant to the [[Article Four of the United States Constitution|Territorial Clause]]<ref>Art. IV, Sec. 3, clause 2, U.S. Constitution</ref> of the U.S. Constitution.<ref name=status2007 /> In a 1996 report on a Puerto Rico status political bill, the "[[United States House Committee on Natural Resources|U.S. House Committee on Resources]] stated that PR's current status does not meet the criteria for any of the options for full self-government". It concluded that Puerto Rico is still an unincorporated territory of the U.S. under the territorial clause, that the establishment of local self-government with the consent of the people can be unilaterally revoked by the U.S. Congress, and that U.S. Congress can also withdraw the U.S. citizenship of Puerto Rican residents of Puerto Rico at any time, for a legitimate Federal purpose.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://commdocs.house.gov/committees/resources/hii43194.000/hii43194_0.HTM|title=Puerto Rico Status Field Hearing|publisher=Committee on Resources, U.S. House of Representatives, 105th Congress|date=April 19, 1997|access-date=2007-10-01}}</ref> The application of the Constitution to Puerto Rico is limited by the [[Insular Cases]].

On December 21, 2007, the Bush Administration's Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status reiterated and confirmed that Puerto Rico continues to be a territory of the U.S. under the plenary powers of the U.S. Congress,<ref name="autogenerated4">{{cite web|url=http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/documents/2007-report-by-the-president-task-force-on-puerto-rico-status.pdf |title=''Report By the President's Task Force On Puerto Rico's Status (December 2007)'' |access-date=2011-06-13}}</ref><ref name="autogenerated1">{{Cite web |url=http://www.eldiariony.com/noticias/detail.aspx?section=20&desc=Nuestros%20Pa%C3%ADses&id=1778876 |title=U.S. hardens position on Puerto Rico ("EE.UU. endurece posición sobre Puerto Rico"); Jesús Dávila – El Diario La Prensa; December 22, 2007 |access-date=May 8, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080308162027/http://www.eldiariony.com/noticias/detail.aspx?section=20&desc=Nuestros%20Pa%C3%ADses&id=1778876 |archive-date=March 8, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> a position shared by the remaining two-major parties: [[New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico|New Progressive Party]] and the [[Puerto Rican Independence Party]].<ref name="autogenerated1" />

On June 15, 2009, the [[Special Committee on Decolonization|United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization]] approved a draft resolution calling on the Government of the United States to expedite a process that would allow the Puerto Rican people to exercise fully their inalienable right to self-determination and independence.<ref>{{citation|url=https://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2009/gacol3193.doc.htm|title=Members Hear Petitioners Speak up for Independence, Statehood, Free Association|publisher=General Assembly of the United Nations|date=June 15, 2009}}</ref>

Following the reports recommendations the 2009 bill ({{USBill|111|H.R.|2499}}), was introduced in the United States House of Representatives on May 19, 2009, by [[Pedro Pierluisi]] (D-[[Puerto Rico]]).<ref name=bill2009>{{cite web|url=http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h111-2499&tab=related|title=H.R. 2499|access-date=May 21, 2009|author=111th Congress (2009)|date=May 19, 2009|work=Legislation|publisher=GovTrack.us|quote=Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2009|archive-date=January 19, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119154343/http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h111-2499&tab=related|url-status=dead}}</ref> The bill would have provided for a referendum giving Puerto Ricans the choice between the options of retaining their present political status, or choosing a new status.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.hr2499.com/| title = HR 2499 Puerto Rico Democracy Act Website| access-date = March 20, 2015| archive-date = December 17, 2014| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141217063204/http://hr2499.com/| url-status = dead}}</ref> If the former option won, the referendum would have been held again every 8 years. If the latter option won, a separate referendum would be held where Puerto Ricans would have been given the option of being admitted as a US State "on equal footing with the other states", or becoming a "sovereign nation, either fully independent from or in free association with the United States." The bill enjoyed bi-partisan support in the House of Representatives, with 182 co-sponsors and was reported out of the House Resources Committee on a 30–8 vote. The measure was passed by the House on April 29, 2010.<ref>{{cite web |author=Dwyer Arce|url=http://jurist.org/paperchase/2010/04/done-us-house-passes-bill-on-puerto-rico-status-referendum.php|title=US House approves Puerto Rico status referendum bill|date=April 30, 2009|publisher=JURIST – Paper Chase}}</ref> The bill did not pass in the Senate.<ref name=bill2009/>

On March 16, 2011, the President's Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status issued a third report<ref>{{cite web |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/default/files/uploads/Puerto_Rico_Task_Force_Report.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2016-07-14 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170216184218/https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/default/files/uploads/Puerto_Rico_Task_Force_Report.pdf |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |work=[[whitehouse.gov]] |archive-date=2017-02-16 }}</ref> that reaffirmed the legal position adopted by the three previous presidents over nearly a quarter century that Puerto Rico remains today "subject to the Territory Clause of the U.S. Constitution (see Report at p.&nbsp;26), that the territory's long-term economic well-being would be enhanced by an early resolution of the political status problem (p.&nbsp;33) and devotes most of the report to extensive economic analysis and recommendations.

On December 11, 2012, the [[Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico]] enacted a [[concurrent resolution]] to request the [[U.S. President|President]] and the [[Congress of the United States]] to respond diligently and effectively, and to act on the demand of the people of Puerto Rico, as freely and democratically expressed in the plebiscite held on November 6, 2012, to end, once and for all, its current form of territorial status and to begin the process to admit Puerto Rico to the Union as a State.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.puertoricoreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/2012-concurrent-resolution.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130112212628/http://www.puertoricoreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/2012-concurrent-resolution.pdf |url-status=usurped |archive-date=January 12, 2013 |title=The Senate and the House of Representative of Puerto Rico Concurrent Resolution |date=December 2012 |access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref>

On May 15, 2013, headed by non-voting Resident Commissioner [[Pedro Pierluisi]], a group of 119 Democratic and 12 Republican members of Congress introduced H.R. 2000, the Puerto Rico Status Resolution Act to Congress, requesting a process for voting to admit Puerto Rico as a State to be approved and a vote to ratify Puerto Rico as a state.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20130927135632/http://www.puertoricoreport.org/pierluisi-introduces-historic-legislation/ "Pierluisi Introduces Historic Legislation"]}}, ''Puerto Rico Report'', 15 May 2013. Retrieved on 15 May 2013.</ref><ref name=hr2000>{{cite web|title=H.R. 2000: Puerto Rico Status Resolution Act|url=https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/113/hr2000|publisher=Govtrack.us|access-date=1 November 2014}}</ref> It did not receive a vote in the House.<ref name=hr2000/>

The nature of Puerto Rico's political relationship with the United States is the subject of ongoing debate in the United Nations and the [[International Community]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL32933.pdf|title=Political Status of Puerto Rico: Background, Options, and Issues in the 109th Congress|date=May 25, 2005|author=Keith Bea|publisher=Congressional Research Service|access-date=2007-10-01}}</ref><ref name="sdc">{{cite press release|title=Special committee on decolonization approves text calling on United States to expedite Puerto Rican self-determination process|date=13 June 2006|publisher=Department of Public Information, United Nations General Assembly|url=https://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/gacol3138.doc.htm|access-date=2007-10-01}}</ref> According to two consecutive Bush Administration President's Task Force Reports,<ref name=status/> the latest of which was issued on December 21, 2007<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.primerahora.com/XStatic/primerahora/docs/espanol/whitehousestatusreport.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=January 12, 2008 |archive-date=February 16, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216013058/http://www.primerahora.com/XStatic/primerahora/docs/espanol/whitehousestatusreport.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> Puerto Rico is an unincorporated [[organized territory]] of the United States, subject to the [[plenary power]]s of the United States government. The [[Popular Democratic Party (Puerto Rico)|Popular Democratic Party]] has challenged the Bush Administration's Task Force Reports stating that in 1953 Puerto Rico achieved a compact of association between both nations that was recognized by the United Nations. Nonetheless, the aforementioned U.S. Presidential and Congressional Reports state that the current prerogatives assumed by the Puerto Rico government are delegated by the U.S. Congress and may be amended or eliminated at its sole behest.

In a letter sent by the former governor of Puerto Rico to the former U.S. Secretary of State, [[Condoleezza Rice]] and the Co-Chairs of the White House's Presidential Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status on the Bush administration, former governor Acevedo Vilá stated:<ref name="autogenerated2">{{cite web |url=http://www.plenglish.com/article.asp?ID=%7B0BBF386D-F7D6-4870-9CF0-EC85014C0EC6%7D)&language=en |title=Prensa Latina, Nestor Rosa-Marbrell, November 20, 2007; last verified on December 1st, 2007 |publisher=Plenglish.com |date= |access-date=2011-06-13 |archive-date=October 3, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081003065701/http://www.plenglish.com/article.asp?ID=%7B0BBF386D-F7D6-4870-9CF0-EC85014C0EC6%7D%29&language=EN |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="autogenerated3">{{cite web |url=http://espanol.news.yahoo.com/s/19112007/54/eeuu-gobernador-pide-rice-enmiende-informe-estatus-pol-tico-p.html |title=''El Gobernador pide a Rice que enmiende el informe sobre el estatus político de P.Rico''; |publisher=Espanol.news.yahoo.com |date=2011-04-20 |access-date=2011-06-13 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080110063744/http://espanol.news.yahoo.com/s/19112007/54/eeuu-gobernador-pide-rice-enmiende-informe-estatus-pol-tico-p.html |archive-date=2008-01-10 }}</ref>

:"My Administration's position is very clear: if the Task Force and the Bush Administration stand by their 2005 conclusions, then for over 50 years the U.S Government has perpetuated a 'monumental hoax' on the people of Puerto Rico, on the people of the United States and on the international community. If the 2005 report articulates the new official position of the United States, the time has come now for the [[United States Department of State|State Department]] to formally notify the United Nations of this new position and assume the international legal consequences. You cannot have a legal and constitutional interpretation for local, political purposes and a different one for the international community. If it is a serious, relevant document, the report must have international consequences. Alternatively, the Task Force may review and amend the 2005 conclusions to make them consistent with legal and historical precedent, and therefore allow future status developments based on a binding compact."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fortaleza.gobierno.pr/admin_fortaleza/sistema/noticias/1160.doc|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081029001710/http://www.fortaleza.gobierno.pr/admin_fortaleza/sistema/noticias/1160.doc|url-status=dead|title=Governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá's letter to U.S. President George W. Bush's President's Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status (formally addressed to the Co-Chairs of the Bush Administration's Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status); October 23, 2007|archive-date=October 29, 2008|access-date=December 22, 2007}}</ref>

On December 15, 2022, the U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of the Puerto Rico Status Act. The act sought to resolve Puerto Rico's status and its relationship to the United States through a binding plebiscite.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/puerto-rico-status-act-house-vote-territory-plebiscite-rcna61871|title=House votes in favor of resolving Puerto Rico's territorial status|website=NBC News|date=December 15, 2022}}</ref>

In September 2023, Roger Wicker reintroduced legislation in the United States Congress on the territorial status of Puerto Rico. a two-round consultation process. The first vote is scheduled for August 4, 2024, where Puerto Ricans will have the choice between four alternatives: annexation to the United States, independence, sovereignty in free association, and a free state associated with the United States.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wicker.senate.gov/2023/9/wicker-reintroduces-puerto-rico-status-act|title=Wicker Reintroduces Puerto Rico Status Act|website=www.wicker-senate.gov|date=September 28, 2023}}</ref>

In July 2024, Governor Pedro Pierluisi calls a plebiscite on the status of Puerto Rico in November 2024. For the first time, the island's current status as a U.S. territory will not be an option during the non-binding plebiscite. The executive order follows the U.S. House of Representatives' approval in 2022 of a bill to help Puerto Rico move toward a change in territorial status. Voters have a choice between statehood, independence, or independence with free association, the terms of which would be negotiated regarding foreign affairs, U.S. citizenship, and use of the U.S. dollar.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Porto Rico inclura un plébiscite sur le statut lors des élections générales de novembre|url=https://apnews.com/article/puerto-rico-status-plebiscite-election-e763c4d11e10a42fb557bd1bbd722614}}</ref> There was three choices: statehood, independence, and independence with free association with the United States (There was no option to maintains status). The top choice was 57% voted for Statehood (as part of the USA) from 528 thousand votes.<ref>[https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/jenniffer-gonzalez-of-puerto-ricos-pro-statehood-party-edges-ahead-in-gubernatorial-election Jenniffer González of Puerto Rico’s pro-statehood party edges ahead in gubernatorial election], Politics Nov 6, 2024 11:29 AM EST by Danica Coto AP</ref><ref>[https://floridianpress.com/2024/11/puerto-rico-voted-for-statehood-what-happens-next/ Puerto Rico Voted for Statehood, What Happens Next? by Daniel Molina]</ref>

On February 15, 2025, the Puerto Rico House of Representatives approved a resolution on the legal status of Puerto Rico, 'the resolution, requests that "the President and Congress of the United States of America respond promptly and act in accordance with the demands of the citizens of Puerto Rico.<ref>{{cite web |title=Cámara aprueba resolución sobre status que populares querían debatir en inglés {{!}} Metro Puerto Rico  |url=https://www.metro.pr/noticias/2025/02/13/camara-aprueba-resolucion-sobre-status-que-populares-querian-debatir-en-ingles/ |website=metro.pr|date=February 15, 2025 }}</ref>