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Can Puerto Ricans vote as expats? (discuss.tchncs.de)

submitted 1 month ago by Bob_Robertson_IX@discuss.tchncs.de to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

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I've heard that the reason Puerto Ricans can't vote is because Puerto Rico isn't a state and it is states that choose the president, not voters. But what about expats living abroad? Do they just get to pick which state gets their vote? If so, couldn't Puerto Ricans do that too?And what about people in DC? Where do their electoral college votes come from?

I'm sure I'm missing something here, I'm just not sure what.

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[–] rando895@lemmygrad.ml 10 points 1 month ago (1 children)

So Puerto Rico is just another US colony then?

[–] Vanth@reddthat.com 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

just

It's not simple. The history, government, and politics sections of the Wikipedia article on Puerto Rico is a great place to start.

[–] rando895@lemmygrad.ml 8 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Basically the article says they don't pay taxes, don't have full protection under the US Constitution, have to obey US laws and are subject to the powers of the US Congress and President, have no voting rights, are subject to the draft, considered US citizens, etc.

So that basically sounds like a colony.

[–] Vanth@reddthat.com 0 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

I think many people would agree with you. Not all.

Personally, I do think Puerto Rico is basically a colony in all but name. But I know people living in Puerto Rico now who disagree. And I tend to defer to the people actually living in The Place when it comes to discussions like this.

The Wikipedia article on the Puerto Rico statehood movement might also be interesting to you if you didn't find it yourself already. Puerto Rico has had several referendums in recent years, on one of them:

the fourth referendum, held in November 2012, asked voters (1) whether they wanted to maintain the current political status of Puerto Rico and, if not, (2) which alternative status they prefer. Of the fifty-four percent (54.0%) who voted "No" on maintaining the status quo, 61.11% chose statehood, 33.34% chose free association, and 5.55% chose independence