Puerto Rico governor Wanda Vázquez was defeated in a primary. |
Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico
Known as the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the self-governing unincorporated and organized territory's governor Wanda Vázquez Garced was brutally defeated in a primary to run for a full term.
Vázquez is identified as a New Progressive Party (Partido Nuevo Progresista) member and the Republican Party. She was defeated by former U.S. Representative/Resident Commissioner Pedro Rafael Pierluisi Urrutia in a primary upset. Pierluisi identifies as a member of the New Progressive Party and the Democratic Party.
With more than 66% of the vote, the Associated Press called the race for Pierluisi. He had received more than 58% of the vote compared to nearly 42% of the vote for Vázquez.
"We have to abide by the decision of the majority," Vázquez said in a brief speech where she warned her rival Pierluisi that he should "aspire" to have the support of those who voted for her. She will remain as the governor until the winner of the Puerto Rican general election on November 3.
Turmoils in Puerto Rico have affected the way of life. |
Vázquez was facing a lot of pressure shortly after taking office. She was not popular. A reporter and a group of activists uncovered a hidden bunker full of supplies. She knew of its existence and became the anchor that sank her campaign chances.
The U.S. territory has experienced a whole lot of problems since the Hurricane Maria tragedy. The island faced some of the worst damage in modern history. Over 3,800 Americans died from that hurricane. Donald J. Trump continues to claim that the territory got billions in government aid and stated that he would be willing to give up the territory for Greenland.
No he was not joking.
The New Progressive Party is hoping to convince the U.S. Congress to approve statehood. The Republicans are against granting statehood to Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. They are against establishing voting rights for those living in the U.S. territories.
Those living in Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Northern Mariana Islands, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands can not vote in the presidential election. They can only pick their presidential nominee for the Democratic National and Republican National Conventions. They have U.S. Representatives who are non-voting delegates to the House. The resident commissioner of Puerto Rico is a four year term as a U.S. Representative.
Pierluisi will face off against Charlie Delgado (born Carlos Delgado Altier), the current mayor of the city of Isabela. He is a member of the Popular Democratic Party (Partido Popular Democrático).
Former U.S. Representative and residential commissioner Pedro Pierluisi will face his opponent in the general. |
Delgado defeats San Juan mayor and Trump critic Carmen Yulín Cruz Soto. Delgado won with 60% of the vote.
The results came one week after delayed and missing ballots led to a chaotic primary that forced a second round of voting on Sunday in which thousands of Puerto Ricans got a second chance to vote for the first time.
Voting centers in nearly 50 of the island's 78 municipalities opened following a recent Supreme Court decision that stated a second round of voting would take place at centers that never opened on August 9 or did not remain open the required eight hours.
With the coronavirus pandemic spreading across the island, many were forced to do in-person voting which is a problem here in the states. Trump is trying to stop mail-in voting by cutting the U.S. Postal Service budget and forcing states to scale back ballots being sent to homes.
The general election will have six candidates running for the U.S. territory.
Pierluisi had served as governor of the territory for only one week before Vázquez assumed power.
Ricardo "Ricky" Antonio Rosselló Nevares was forced to resign due to his handling during the Hurricane Maria crisis. He was caught on camera bashing residents and saying that he and Trump done more for these "ungrateful assholes."
The territory's residents wants elections commission president Juan Ernesto Dávila Rivera to resign after he failed to protect the elections.
Many residents believe that the failure to handling voting is a sign of what the states are going to face if they're not prepared.
Puerto Ricans had to wait for hours in the sun to vote. Even in a pandemic, residents had to vote. |
We have over 7 million Americans affected by the coronavirus. We have over 35 million Americans out of work. We have gun violence almost everyday in the United States. We have millions facing eviction from their homes due to the CARES Act not being extended by the U.S. Senate. We have civil unrest in the United States as well as Puerto Rico.
California, Texas, Florida, Georgia, Arizona, Puerto Rico, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Washington and Oklahoma have seen a huge increase in coronavirus cases.
Trump is too busy golfing and tweeting insults and conspiracy theories on social media to be worried about the problems America is facing. He has built his presidency on divisiveness and deception.
Puerto Ricans are paying the price for a Trump presidency as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment