[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 145 (Wednesday, November 14, 2012)]
[House]
[Page H6346]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           RESULTS OF PUERTO RICO POLITICAL STATUS PLEBISCITE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Puerto Rico (Mr. Pierluisi) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PIERLUISI. Mr. Speaker, Puerto Rico recently held a plebiscite on 
its political status. I want to convey the results to the American 
public, describe their significance, and outline the next steps I will 
take.
  As background, Puerto Rico has been a U.S. territory since 1898. The 
island is home to 3.7 million American citizens who cannot vote for 
President, are not represented in the Senate, and elect one nonvoting 
Member to the House. Federal law is supreme in Puerto Rico, but its 
residents are treated unequally under many Federal programs.
  Plebiscite voters were first asked whether they want Puerto Rico to 
remain a territory. Over 1.7 million people answered, which is about 75 
percent of registered voters on the island. Fifty-four percent said 
they did not want the current status to continue, while 46 percent said 
they did.
  Voters were then asked to express their preference among the three 
viable alternatives to the current status: statehood, free association, 
and independence. Over 1.3 million people chose an option. Sixty-one 
percent voted for statehood, 33 percent voted for free association, and 
5.5 percent voted for independence. In addition, 472,000 voters did not 
provide an answer.
  This plebiscite marked the first time voters were directly asked 
whether they want Puerto Rico to remain a territory. One of the two 
main political parties in Puerto Rico urged a ``yes'' vote. 
Nevertheless, the ``no'' vote won by eight points. Those voting ``no'' 
included statehood supporters, as well as advocates of independence and 
free association. These three groups are united in their opposition to 
the current status which is colonial in nature. It deprives Puerto 
Ricans of their right to choose their leaders who make their national 
laws and to equal treatment under those laws.

                              {time}  1010

  Not one of my stateside colleagues in Congress would accept this 
response for their constituents. So they should respect that my 
constituents no longer accept it either.
  The rejection of territory status fundamentally changes the terms of 
this debate. After this vote, the question is not whether but when 
Puerto Rico will cease to be a territory and will have a fully 
democratic status. Defenders of the status quo may obstruct change in 
the short term, but in a democracy, the will of the people ultimately 
prevails.
  Let me turn to the second question in the plebiscite, asking voters 
which status should replace the current status. Of the 1.3 million 
people who voted for one of the three options, a supermajority chose 
statehood. Of critical importance, the 810,000 votes for statehood on 
the second question exceeded the 803,000 votes for the current status 
on the first question. For the first time, there are more people in 
Puerto Rico who want to become a State than who want to continue as a 
territory. This fact further undermines the democratic legitimacy of 
the current status.
  Some wish to downplay the results of the plebiscite by citing the 
voters who left the second question blank, but this argument does not 
withstand scrutiny. In our democracy, outcomes are determined by 
ballots properly cast. Power rests with the citizen who votes, not the 
one who stays home or who refuses to choose from among the options 
provided.
  Some voters may have left the second question blank simply because 
they prefer the current status to its alternatives. Those voters were 
able to vote for the current status in the first question. So their 
viewpoint was reflected in the plebiscite results. Others may have 
declined to answer because they were led to believe there was another 
option that should have been on the ballot, a best-of-all-worlds 
proposal called ``enhanced commonwealth.'' But each of the last four 
Presidential administrations has rejected this proposal, as have all 
key congressional leaders. A blank vote to protest the exclusion of an 
impossible status proposal is entitled to no weight.
  As Puerto Rico's representative in the U.S. Congress, I will work 
with my allies to ensure that the President and Congress take 
appropriate action in light of these results. The people of Puerto Rico 
have spoken, and I intend to make certain that their voice is heard 
loud and clear.

                          ____________________