Sorry, Jeb, Puerto Rican Statehood Is an Awful Idea

‘Puerto Rican citizens — U.S. citizens — ought to have the right to determine whether they want to be a state,” Jeb Bush said this week. But they have had the right to determine that several times, and they seem to have determined the answer: No. The former Florida governor also said he thought statehood was a good idea on the merits, which it plainly is not.
The most recent occasion for Puerto Ricans to weigh in was 2012, when they technically did end up voting for statehood — in a ballot process that would make Vladimir Putin blush. Voters were first asked whether they supported Puerto Rico’s current relationship with the U.S., as a commonwealth. They disapproved of their current status, 54–46, a margin that can be in large part explained by the small but non-negligible share of Puerto Ricans who want complete independence.


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