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On November 5, 2024, Puerto Rico held a non-binding referendum alongside the 2024 Puerto Rican general election and the 2024 United States elections. This was the seventh status referendum held in Puerto Rico amidst the long running debate over the island's political status.
Puerto Rican voters were presented with three choices regarding the political status of Puerto Rico: statehood, independence, and free association. This was the first time that maintaining the island's current status as a United States territory was not an option. This decision was cited by the Popular Democratic Party, the Movimiento Victoria Ciudadana, and the Puerto Rican Independence Party to denounce the referendum and call for either a boycott or for voters to spoil their ballots. However, Puerto Rico's governing New Progressive Party praised the island's vote for statehood, in which over half of the electorate cast a vote.
The option for statehood achieved a majority of the vote with 540,635 votes, followed by independence with 293,224 votes, and independence with free association with 116,834 votes. Over 16% of ballots were either blank or invalid.
Background
Main article: Puerto Rico status referendumsIn the 2020 Puerto Rican status referendum the option to pursue statehood won the referendum 52.52%–47.48%.
In 2022, the United States House of Representatives passed the Puerto Rico Status Act. It did not pass the United States Senate.
In August 2024, the Puerto Rico Supreme Court dismissed the July 2024 petition by the Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) asking the State Election Commission (CEE) to halt the status referendum.
In September 2024, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit seeking a preliminary and permanent injunction, as well as a declaratory judgment, allowing potential voters to register, through October 6. On October 1, the High Court of Puerto Rico dismissed the lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The Court declines to intervene in Puerto Rico's electoral processes or grant the extraordinary remedy of a preliminary injunction. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has failed to demonstrate that the September 21 voter registration deadline constitutes an unconstitutional disenfranchisement, or a manifest injustice, that justifies the intrusion of the United States federal government, into the election administration of the State of Puerto Rico.
On November 21, 2024, former Speaker of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico, José Aponte, asked the State Electoral Commission (CEE), to count all the ballots of the plebiscite on the status, that were not counted on the day of the general election, including the ones voted by mail. The Popular Democratic Party (PPD) warns of going to court if the State Electoral Commission (CEE) decides to recount the plebiscite vote on the status of Puerto Rico.
In December 2024, the representative by accumulation, José Pérez Cordero, goes to the United States Congress to promote the results of the consultation on the status, where the quality of state prevailed with a majority of 57 percent of the votes.
Campaign
New Progressive Party (PNP) gubernatorial candidate Jennifer Gonzalez Colon called a blank vote a "wasted vote" emphasizing the importance of the vote. The pro-statehood Republican Party of Puerto Rico supports the referendum.
The Popular Democratic Party called for a blank vote for not including Commonwealth or the current system. Gubernatorial candidate of Proyecto Dignidad Javier Jiménez announced that he will not vote but granted their members free vote. Movimiento Victoria Ciudadana called to "damage" their referendum and presidential ballots and their resident commissioner candidate Ana Irma Rivera Lassén announced that she will write "Get out LUMA" on both. The Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) denounced the referendum as "unconstitutional and illegal" and "a desperate act by the PNP leadership".
Question
The referendum featured three choices in the following order: independence with free association; statehood; and independence. It was the first time the island's current status as a U.S. territory was not an option. Note that free association was an option on some older referendums also, and the structure of voting options has varied over time.
Opinion polls
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Statehood | Free association | Independence | Other/undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| El Nuevo Día | October 2024 | — | — | 44% | 25% | 19% | 12% |
| Gaither International | 12 July–1 August 2024 | 1,138 (A) | — | 45% | 23% | 11% | 21% |
| AtlasIntel | 15–22 February 2024 | 2,200 (V) | ± 2.0% | 47.2% | 23.3% | 11.4% | 18.1% |
Results
According to the final results, 57% voted for statehood, 31% for independence, and 12% for free association.
| Choice | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Statehood | 540,635 | 56.87 | |
| Independence | 293,224 | 30.84 | |
| Free association | 116,834 | 12.29 | |
| Total | 950,693 | 100.00 | |
| Valid votes | 950,693 | 83.89 | |
| Invalid votes | 13,080 | 1.15 | |
| Blank votes | 169,448 | 14.95 | |
| Total votes | 1,133,221 | 100.00 | |
| Registered voters/turnout | 1,987,317 | 57.02 | |
| Source: CEEPUR | |||
Notes
- Key:
A – all adults
RV – registered voters
LV – likely voters
V – unclear - Blank ballot with 8%, undecided with 3%, would not vote with 1%
References
- "Plebiscito Resulatados Isal" [Island Plesbiscite Results]. Comisión Estatal de Elecciones [Puerto Rico State Commission on Elections] (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2021-02-02. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
- Kohli, Anisha (2022-12-17). "Puerto Rico Independence Bill Passes in the House". TIME. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- "Supremo le dice que no a petición del PIP para detener impresión de papeletas". Metro.pr (in Spanish). 2024-08-27. Retrieved 2024-08-22.
- "Tribunal Supremo desestima demanda del PIP para invalidar el plebiscito criollo". El Nuevo Dia (in Spanish). 2024-08-28. Retrieved 2024-08-29.
- Figueroa Cancel, Alex (2024-09-23). "La ACLU radica demanda federal para que el cierre del periodo de inscripción en el registro electoral sea en octubre". El Nuevo Dia (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-10-02.
- Torres Nieves, Valéria María (2024-10-01). "Tribunal Federal desestima demanda de la ACLU para reabrir el registro electoral". El Nuevo Dia (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-10-02.
- "They demand that the President of the CEE count all the ballots of the consultation on the status". notiuno.com (in Spanish). 2024-11-21. Retrieved 2024-11-22.
- "Al tribunal el PPD si la CEE decide volver a contar papeleta presidencial y del plebiscito". periodicolaperla.com (in Spanish). 2024-11-22. Retrieved 2024-11-27.
- "Entregarán resultados del plebiscito a Congresistas". notiuno.com (in Spanish). 2024-12-16. Retrieved 2024-12-16.
- Diaz Tirado, Adriana (2024-07-04). ""Una papeleta en blanco es un voto perdido": Jenniffer González defiende el plebiscito "criollo" en ceremonia del 4 de julio". El Nuevo Día (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-09-06.
- Delgado, José A. (2024-07-16). "Republicanos de la isla harían campaña por Donald Trump si se mantiene la votación presidencial simbólica de Puerto Rico". El Nuevo Día (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-09-06.
- Acevedo Irizarry, Marielis (2024-07-27). "Partido Demócrata en Puerto Rico hará campaña para que boricuas voten por Kamala Harris en cuarta papeleta el 5 de noviembre". El Diario La Prensa (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-07-27.
- "Javier Jiménez no votará en el nuevo plebiscito". NotiCel (in Spanish). 2024-07-03. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
- "Decisión 2024: MVC insta a "dañar" la papeleta del plebiscito y la de presidencia". WAPA-TV (in Spanish). 2024-09-01. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
- "Al Tribunal Supremo el PIP para impugnar plebiscito". Microjuris [es] (in Spanish). 2024-07-12. Retrieved 2024-09-06.
- "Puerto Rico finalizes details of upcoming referendum on political status amid criticism over cost". AP News. 2024-07-24. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- "Puerto Rico will include status plebiscite in November's general elections". AP News. 2024-07-01. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- "En el plebiscito de la prensa colonial se muestra la fuerza de las opciones soberanista e independentistas: 44%". La Casa Editora (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- "Puerto Rico Political Landscape" (PDF). Puerto Rico 51st. Gaither International. p. 24. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
- "Encuesta Atlas - Puerto Rico - Elecciones 2024" (PDF). AtlasIntel (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- "CEE Event". elecciones2024.ceepur.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
- Molina, Daniel (7 November 2024). "Puerto Rico Voted for Statehood, What Happens Next?". The Floridian. Retrieved 10 November 2024.
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