20 thoughts on “Should Americans and other foreigners or non-Puerto Ricans living on the island be allowed to vote in Puerto Rican elections?”
No.
No, this would be the last straw!
Remember Hawaii
I believe this is how Hawaii became a state and the natives second class citizens.
Remember Hawaii and support their struggle today
yes, besides owning the largest tracts of land on which they developed pineapple plantations such as dole and ironically brought Puerto Ricans in to plant and harvest. also, today a bill is before the u.s. congress that would make Hawaiians a separate people and designating certain islands reservations for them. this is being submitted by native Hawaiians–ironically enough! we must definitely remember Hawaii and support their current struggle which is really our own.
THEY ALREADY CAN VOTE!
THIS IS A STUPID QUESTION BECAUSE THEY ALREADY CAN VOTE IF THEY ARE U.S. BORN AND MEET THE RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS.
Globalization
Consider this…with the globalization of trade & culture, would it not be a reasonable proposition that citizenship be defined hemispherically, if not more broadly; as long as one’s affiliation (by birth, work or other economic interests, &c) can be documented & verified. The only solution for the Florida Syndrome/Warp in Americana Form Democracy is electronic voting, and really the only one that makes sense. It would be the only truly accurate mechanism for counting votes, and it would not matter where you are.
(Of course, this prerequires appropriate firewalling & “hacker-free” software.)
The restrictions on full participationi by citizens in foreign lands are really due to administration issues; such as clerical delays, immediately verifiable documentation, tax burden — the sort of things that electronic networking will make easy and quick, once a full proof system of identifiers is in place. Imagine an electronic passport that would allow you not only to cross borders, but to vote at home as well.
So, the question is not so much who should have the right to vote in Puerto Rico; it is how will Voting Rights be defined as the world we live is redefined along global terms. If the global community will bring more peoples together, should they all not have to right to vote for leaders in places other than their places of birth.
Technology is a tool, not a solution
How can I begin a response to such willful, though intelligent, disregard for a people’s sovereignty. You talk about globalization when what is really going on is just a neo-neocolonialism. In other words, whose globalizing whom. Technology is a tool not a solution–my friend. The colonial condition of Puerto Rico needs resolution by her people. Diluting her votes with the votes of non-Puerto Ricans can only hurt this nation.
Dear Not Well Informed
Sorry you missed the point of my response to voting eligibility. Let me restated in simpler terms: The global community will redefine affiliations, allegiances and citizenship in hemispherical terms, if not on a broader scale.
Your “blood” or “ethnicity” or nationality will not delimit participation in elections, any more than it will in commerce and other shared activities and events. Consider the possibility — if you really want to seriously factor in nationalistic options — long removed Puertorriquenos in Hawaii, Germany, Alaska, and other parts of the globe, reaffirming their affiliation to Puerto Rico & exercise their right to vote in those elections, through a system made possible through this “electronic passport” I referred to in my initial entry on this theme.
Electronic communication will simply make this evolutionary development possible, it is not the thing in itself. It maybe what makes the thing itself possible. For that reason, it cannot be set aside, ignored; or perhaps even, separated from the outcome described above.
Derecho al voto
El tema de quien tiene el derecho al voto es algo muy delicado, Es mi opinión que si uno vive en un país y contribuye en la economía de este país no se le puede quitar este derecho al voto, no creo necesario que la persona deba ser de ascendencia puertorriqueña para que este tenga el derecho a votar, el solo echo de gustar vivir en este lugar debe ser suficiente motivo para que pueda ejecutar este derecho, yo como puertorriqueño viviendo en EU me creo tener el derecho de hacerlo como cualquier norteamericano,
Esto es democracia.
RE: Technology is a tool, not a solution
If you work, live and pay taxes here – you should have the right to vote. If you have to live with political system that is rife with cronyism (incompetent state workers here act as if their jobs were a birthright), nepotism and mayors who defraud the federal funds – then you have the right to vote them out.
I don’t understand allowing prisoners the right vote because they were born here and denying that right to decent “foreign” citizen because they
were’nt. Where’s the logic in that folks?
Foreigners voting in Puerto Rico
Before I make my comments I think a short background will help everyone to understand why I have these opinions. I was born and raised in New York City. My Mother was from Humacao (Mabu to be exact) and my Father was Polish (from Pennsylvania). I first came to live in Puerto Rico in 1973 and left in 1977 to serve in the Army in Germany. I returned in 1990 and found that very little had changed on the island other than the traffic jams were worse than ever. By my lights, if you live, work and pay taxes here you have a right to vote – I don’t care if you’re from Mars. If you were born here but are imprisoned, you should lose your right to vote. I don’t understand giving the right to vote to a criminal because he was born here and denying a decent citizen that right because he was’nt.
Clashing interests
If you could try looking beyond your personal interest, as you are so ready to criticize in others, you might find that your personal interests may clash in a fundamental way with the nation of Puerto Rico as a nation. That is, you may not have any allegiance to Puerto Rico but to the United States and so will vote for–let’s say for example–the Navy staying in Vieques.
RE: Derecho al voto
You want to speak in abstractions. And this is great for theory and public goodwill and a practice that has long gone out of style if it really ever existed–statesmanship or true citizenship. And we all, by virtue of being “enlightened,” will subscribe to the the Rights of Man, but the reality is that in the case of Puerto Rico and other colonial realities we are looking at “undemocratic” relations between countries. Puerto Rico became tethered to the United States not by an act of free will but of war. As such, there are people who are on the island serving the state interests of the United States and whose allegiance ultimately rests with the U.S. and not Puerto Rico. If they would pledge allegiance to Puerto Rico and be willing to give up their U.S. citizenship, for example, and become Puerto Rican citizens then certainly why not let them vote. For example, in order to vote in the U.S. you must be an American citizen and meet residency requirements.
Also, I do not believe that the right to vote should be based on any privilege of property or class.
Will Naval personnel vote in Vieques referendum?
Since non-Puerto Ricans who hold American citizenship are allowed to vote in Puerto Rico, I ask: Will Naval personnel be allowed to vote in the Vieques referendum that will decide the future of their Naval base on our island?
RE: No.
Why,that person would be a part of the country.
RE: Foreigners voting in Puerto Rico
I strongly agree with you on that one.
RE: Foreigners should be naturalized PR citizens
Let me just play devil’s advocate and say I can think of one reason why you’re decent non-Puerto Rican should not vote if they do not swear allegiance to Puerto Rico and not the United States or Great Britain or Canada or Cuba or Peru or the Dominican Republic. He or she may simply be voting, rightfully, for the interests of his or her own country over the interests of Puerto Rico. It is not by accident that most countries require that you be a citizen of that country before you are allowed to vote. People’s places of origin are not being called into question. What is being called into question is where their interests lie. Someone has already mentioned this and also someone else mentioned the case of Hawaii, where Americans toppled the legitimate government of the island and voted to become a state. Right now–I read this here too–there is a bill before Congress that would turnover certain islands exclusively to the indigenous people of Hawaii and that would grant these Hawaiians the same status as the American Indian–that is, a separate people within the United States.
So think about it.
No one’s talking about having criminals vote but nobody should be talking about having people who don’t pledge allegiance to Puerto Rico and become naturalized Puerto Rican citizens (not American citizens) vote either.
RE: RE: No.
I don’t get what you mean. Which person?
All things being equal but it ain’t
People here want to think well we’re all Americans and we PRAmericans vote in the States so why shouldn’t nonPRAmericans vote in PR–all things being equal. But they ain’t.
RE: Will Naval personnel vote in Vieques referendum?
I don’t think that is an issue, since there are less than 25 personnel, permantly stationed in Vieques. Everyone else that works there, lives in Ceiba, etc.
I have lived in Puerto Rico for seven years. My son goes to school here my husband works here we pay our taxes here and we have no plans to move away. My husband was born here I was not . Are some of you saying my husband should be allowed to vote but not I? And what about our son when he is old enough he was not born here but has lived here all his life should he be allowed to vote, And who gets to choose who is allowed. If this question was ever ask in the states racism would be screamed from the mountain tops.Should Amerincan citizens in New York from Puerto Rico have to say a oath to vote I don`t think so.
No.
No, this would be the last straw!
Remember Hawaii
I believe this is how Hawaii became a state and the natives second class citizens.
Remember Hawaii and support their struggle today
yes, besides owning the largest tracts of land on which they developed pineapple plantations such as dole and ironically brought Puerto Ricans in to plant and harvest. also, today a bill is before the u.s. congress that would make Hawaiians a separate people and designating certain islands reservations for them. this is being submitted by native Hawaiians–ironically enough! we must definitely remember Hawaii and support their current struggle which is really our own.
THEY ALREADY CAN VOTE!
THIS IS A STUPID QUESTION BECAUSE THEY ALREADY CAN VOTE IF THEY ARE U.S. BORN AND MEET THE RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS.
Globalization
Consider this…with the globalization of trade & culture, would it not be a reasonable proposition that citizenship be defined hemispherically, if not more broadly; as long as one’s affiliation (by birth, work or other economic interests, &c) can be documented & verified. The only solution for the Florida Syndrome/Warp in Americana Form Democracy is electronic voting, and really the only one that makes sense. It would be the only truly accurate mechanism for counting votes, and it would not matter where you are.
(Of course, this prerequires appropriate firewalling & “hacker-free” software.)
The restrictions on full participationi by citizens in foreign lands are really due to administration issues; such as clerical delays, immediately verifiable documentation, tax burden — the sort of things that electronic networking will make easy and quick, once a full proof system of identifiers is in place. Imagine an electronic passport that would allow you not only to cross borders, but to vote at home as well.
So, the question is not so much who should have the right to vote in Puerto Rico; it is how will Voting Rights be defined as the world we live is redefined along global terms. If the global community will bring more peoples together, should they all not have to right to vote for leaders in places other than their places of birth.
Technology is a tool, not a solution
How can I begin a response to such willful, though intelligent, disregard for a people’s sovereignty. You talk about globalization when what is really going on is just a neo-neocolonialism. In other words, whose globalizing whom. Technology is a tool not a solution–my friend. The colonial condition of Puerto Rico needs resolution by her people. Diluting her votes with the votes of non-Puerto Ricans can only hurt this nation.
Dear Not Well Informed
Sorry you missed the point of my response to voting eligibility. Let me restated in simpler terms: The global community will redefine affiliations, allegiances and citizenship in hemispherical terms, if not on a broader scale.
Your “blood” or “ethnicity” or nationality will not delimit participation in elections, any more than it will in commerce and other shared activities and events. Consider the possibility — if you really want to seriously factor in nationalistic options — long removed Puertorriquenos in Hawaii, Germany, Alaska, and other parts of the globe, reaffirming their affiliation to Puerto Rico & exercise their right to vote in those elections, through a system made possible through this “electronic passport” I referred to in my initial entry on this theme.
Electronic communication will simply make this evolutionary development possible, it is not the thing in itself. It maybe what makes the thing itself possible. For that reason, it cannot be set aside, ignored; or perhaps even, separated from the outcome described above.
Derecho al voto
El tema de quien tiene el derecho al voto es algo muy delicado, Es mi opinión que si uno vive en un país y contribuye en la economía de este país no se le puede quitar este derecho al voto, no creo necesario que la persona deba ser de ascendencia puertorriqueña para que este tenga el derecho a votar, el solo echo de gustar vivir en este lugar debe ser suficiente motivo para que pueda ejecutar este derecho, yo como puertorriqueño viviendo en EU me creo tener el derecho de hacerlo como cualquier norteamericano,
Esto es democracia.
RE: Technology is a tool, not a solution
If you work, live and pay taxes here – you should have the right to vote. If you have to live with political system that is rife with cronyism (incompetent state workers here act as if their jobs were a birthright), nepotism and mayors who defraud the federal funds – then you have the right to vote them out.
I don’t understand allowing prisoners the right vote because they were born here and denying that right to decent “foreign” citizen because they
were’nt. Where’s the logic in that folks?
Foreigners voting in Puerto Rico
Before I make my comments I think a short background will help everyone to understand why I have these opinions. I was born and raised in New York City. My Mother was from Humacao (Mabu to be exact) and my Father was Polish (from Pennsylvania). I first came to live in Puerto Rico in 1973 and left in 1977 to serve in the Army in Germany. I returned in 1990 and found that very little had changed on the island other than the traffic jams were worse than ever. By my lights, if you live, work and pay taxes here you have a right to vote – I don’t care if you’re from Mars. If you were born here but are imprisoned, you should lose your right to vote. I don’t understand giving the right to vote to a criminal because he was born here and denying a decent citizen that right because he was’nt.
Clashing interests
If you could try looking beyond your personal interest, as you are so ready to criticize in others, you might find that your personal interests may clash in a fundamental way with the nation of Puerto Rico as a nation. That is, you may not have any allegiance to Puerto Rico but to the United States and so will vote for–let’s say for example–the Navy staying in Vieques.
RE: Derecho al voto
You want to speak in abstractions. And this is great for theory and public goodwill and a practice that has long gone out of style if it really ever existed–statesmanship or true citizenship. And we all, by virtue of being “enlightened,” will subscribe to the the Rights of Man, but the reality is that in the case of Puerto Rico and other colonial realities we are looking at “undemocratic” relations between countries. Puerto Rico became tethered to the United States not by an act of free will but of war. As such, there are people who are on the island serving the state interests of the United States and whose allegiance ultimately rests with the U.S. and not Puerto Rico. If they would pledge allegiance to Puerto Rico and be willing to give up their U.S. citizenship, for example, and become Puerto Rican citizens then certainly why not let them vote. For example, in order to vote in the U.S. you must be an American citizen and meet residency requirements.
Also, I do not believe that the right to vote should be based on any privilege of property or class.
Will Naval personnel vote in Vieques referendum?
Since non-Puerto Ricans who hold American citizenship are allowed to vote in Puerto Rico, I ask: Will Naval personnel be allowed to vote in the Vieques referendum that will decide the future of their Naval base on our island?
RE: No.
Why,that person would be a part of the country.
RE: Foreigners voting in Puerto Rico
I strongly agree with you on that one.
RE: Foreigners should be naturalized PR citizens
Let me just play devil’s advocate and say I can think of one reason why you’re decent non-Puerto Rican should not vote if they do not swear allegiance to Puerto Rico and not the United States or Great Britain or Canada or Cuba or Peru or the Dominican Republic. He or she may simply be voting, rightfully, for the interests of his or her own country over the interests of Puerto Rico. It is not by accident that most countries require that you be a citizen of that country before you are allowed to vote. People’s places of origin are not being called into question. What is being called into question is where their interests lie. Someone has already mentioned this and also someone else mentioned the case of Hawaii, where Americans toppled the legitimate government of the island and voted to become a state. Right now–I read this here too–there is a bill before Congress that would turnover certain islands exclusively to the indigenous people of Hawaii and that would grant these Hawaiians the same status as the American Indian–that is, a separate people within the United States.
So think about it.
No one’s talking about having criminals vote but nobody should be talking about having people who don’t pledge allegiance to Puerto Rico and become naturalized Puerto Rican citizens (not American citizens) vote either.
RE: RE: No.
I don’t get what you mean. Which person?
All things being equal but it ain’t
People here want to think well we’re all Americans and we PRAmericans vote in the States so why shouldn’t nonPRAmericans vote in PR–all things being equal. But they ain’t.
RE: Will Naval personnel vote in Vieques referendum?
I don’t think that is an issue, since there are less than 25 personnel, permantly stationed in Vieques. Everyone else that works there, lives in Ceiba, etc.
I have lived in Puerto Rico for seven years. My son goes to school here my husband works here we pay our taxes here and we have no plans to move away. My husband was born here I was not . Are some of you saying my husband should be allowed to vote but not I? And what about our son when he is old enough he was not born here but has lived here all his life should he be allowed to vote, And who gets to choose who is allowed. If this question was ever ask in the states racism would be screamed from the mountain tops.Should Amerincan citizens in New York from Puerto Rico have to say a oath to vote I don`t think so.