Puerto Ricans voted to become the 51st U.S. state — again

What would persuade mainland Americans to support their bid?

Analysis by Abdiel Santiago

Alexander Kustov

and

Ali A. Valenzuela

November 13, 2020 at 6:00 a.m. EST

The New Progressive Party candidate for governor of Puerto Rico, Pedro Pierluisi, right, and his teammate for Washington resident commissioner, Jenniffer González-Colón, at a campaign rally Nov. 1 in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. (Thais Llorca/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)

On Nov. 3, while Americans were voting in one of the most divisive presidential elections in modern history, Puerto Ricans decisively voted in favor of becoming the 51st U.S. state and elected pro-statehood Pedro Pierluisi as their governor. The statehood referendum was nonbinding — and yet could be consequential. With more than 3 million U.S. citizens, a population larger than that of 17 U.S. states, the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico has no empowered representation in the federal government.