Puerto Rico status vote faces skepticism on and off the island

Luis Gutiérrez, a Democratic US congressman from Chicago of Puerto Rican descent, who favours full independence, dismissed the vote as a charade given the lack of interest in it among his colleagues on Capitol Hill.

Gov. Ricardo Rossello goes through registration before voting at the San Jose Academy during the fifth referendum in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Sunday, Jun. 11, 2017.

And Congress, the ultimate arbiter of the island's bid for statehood, never picked up the matter.

Proponents of statehood also argue that if it became fully integrated into the Union, Puerto Rico would receive more federal spending to reactivate the economy, which now has an unemployment rate close to 12%.

But, are Americans ready to add a 51st star to their flag?

To many, the political status of Puerto Rico is at the heart of the territory's ongoing debt crisis; it's facing more than $120 billion in outstanding debt and pension obligations.

If nothing changes and our failed territory status continues, overcoming this economic crisis will take far longer and require far more investment than ever needed before.

Puerto Ricans have been US citizens since a law made them so in 1917.

Since then, the USA and Puerto Rico have struggled to see eye to eye on the territory's status.

Rossello had hoped to fund Sunday's vote with federal dollars in order to make it harder for Congress to ignore the result. As a USA territory and not a state, the island can not file for bankruptcy like other states and municipalities. The court has also affirmed the principle that Congress has the power to enact legislation for Puerto Rico that treats the island as a separate and unequal territorial possession. They question why the government is spending more than $5 million on the vote amid a crisis, and note that the U.S. Justice Department has not backed the referendum.

How could becoming a USA state help Puerto Rico solve its financial problems?

Puerto Rico has held four previous referendums on the issue.

The 2000 Puerto Rican Day parade was dedicated to Pedro Albizu Campos, leader of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party, who urged islanders to start an armed struggle for independence, and who in 1950 was convicted of inciting his followers to try to kill U.S. President Harry Truman.

The celebration of Puerto Rican culture is now in its 60th year.

The value of that investment has been slashed by almost 50 percent.

"This is for the Puerto Rican people!" he shouted. A majority of Puerto Ricans (54 percent) voted no.

But close to 30% of all voters in that election cast blank or invalid ballots, a situation which generated doubts about the vote's political legitimacy. A May 24-26 house-to-house poll published by local newspaper El Nuevo Dia found 52 percent of those interviewed favored statehood, compared with 17 percent for the status quo and 15 percent for free association/independence. However, if you include the voters who skipped the question, the percentage of those who chose this option drops to only 45 percent.

In April, the department rejected initial ballot language that would have excluded the option to remain a territory, prompting Rossello to change it. The Puerto Rican government has since incorporated it into the ballot.

Three political parties in Puerto Rico are boycotting Sunday's referendum, including the main opposition party. If Puerto Rico is to become the 51st state, America must vote to accept them by referendum.

Putting aside the constitutional debates, the likely answer is not much. It proceeded along 5th Avenue from 44th Street to 79th Street beginning at Noon, honoring the 3.5 million inhabitants of Puerto Rico and the over five million residing in the United States. Based on the 2010 census count, Puerto Rico, which has a similar population size as CT, would be reapportioned five representatives. More importantly, data show most Puerto Ricans vote Democratic. Investors got attractive tax-exempt bonds that provided ready cash but sank the island deeper into debt. Self-determination is central to the rights of all Americans citizens, including Puerto Ricans, and it is arguably the defining principle of our democracy.