The 2024 elections have certainly been ones of note, especially in Puerto Rico. For some context to our non Puerto Rican readers, there are five political parties established in the island. Those being, Partido Nuevo Progresista (PNP), Partido Independentista Puertorriqueño (PIP), Partido Popular Democrático (PPD), Movimiento Victoria Ciudadana (MVC), and Proyecto Dignidad (PD). In these elections the PIP and MVC parties––which are smaller ones––came together in an alliance to take down the dominant parties of the island: the PNP and PPD. As a result of the bipartisanship and bureaucracy that past governments have had, the island has been in a slow but categorical downward spiral that has led to the U.S. mandating a Junta de Supervisión y Administración Financiera to oversee the spending of government and public funds.
The reason this happens is two fold. First, because whenever there’s a party switch, every unfinished project automatically gets canceled, which ends up being a waste of funds and resources. Second, and most unfortunate, the Puerto Rican government officials have not only misused public funds but stolen the taxpayers money for their own personal gains as well, which has led to more than a dozen arrests of public officials across the years. Therefore, Puerto Ricans trust their government a little less every year and, in that growing mistrust, the smaller parties have gained a bigger following than ever before, and other parties have emerged.
For the first time since being founded in 1946, the Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) came in second place, and the oldest of the five parties and also one of the most recognized, the Popular Democratic Party (PPD), came in third. The PIP came in second place despite that all of their supporters thought they would finally win because of the lack of care from the previous government to attend to the people’s needs and concerns. However, their loss can be partially attributed to the PNP’s intense campaign against the PIP.
It’s important to mention that politics aren’t known for being clean, especially in PR. They attack their opponents mercilessly, showing the public whatever skeletons hide in their closets, and destroying them in the public eye all for the sake of winning the election. This even happens during primaries between members of the same parties. Afterwards, they all act like nothing ever happened which we can assume doesn’t create the best energy to work around.
During election periods, nothing really stops. People still go to work and school, the only difference is the topics that are discussed around these spaces. More often than not, people are pretty vocal about their political views and do have arguments to support them; whether they’re good arguments or not is not important at that time. The change in conversation was especially significant in college spaces, especially at the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) because it has been a space that has always challenged authority, even amidst government attempts to silence its student body.
In two of my classes, influential figures who have either been part of the government or have tried to oppose its unfairness have visited and spoken about their experiences. These three guest speakers were Carlos Vizcarrodo, a Judge and an elected representative for the PPD. José Ortiz Dalliot was another guest speaker, a PPD member as well who directed PRFAA, a government agency meant to work on the relationship between PR and the USA. Most recently was Don Heriberto Marín, a 95-year-old man who was a member of the now non-electorally active party, “Partido Nacionalista de Puerto Rico”; this party is historically known for its members being persecuted for their political beliefs, Don Heriberto was one of them. He was not only persecuted but also given a life sentence in jail until he was given a pardon. Although these men have different views regarding Puerto Rico’s relationship with the US, all these men do have a sense of patriotism that I believe lives inside every person who did and didn’t vote in these past elections. An aspect that these speakers had that was most important, other than a national sense of dignity, was that they recognized history was changing and it is the youth that is teaching the older generations, as well as our fellow youth, that it’s okay to think differently and that we really have no choice.
Puerto Rico has a lot of rich history that I invite everyone to learn about. However, don’t just research one perspective or one ideology, because it’s important to have a rounded knowledge of each party and their ideals. Personally, I know what my electoral choices were and I still stand by them, but that shouldn’t be a reason to shut out anyone who thinks differently. A lot of us younger people heard a lot of chatter in the line for the polls and, while talking with my classmates or just browsing social media after having voted, I noticed just how often older generations got criticized for voting for the same thing while they still suffered the actions of those past governments. There was a lot of judgment and no understanding, but if we go back to what older generations had to live through, we’d understand their mentality a little better, and nothing summarizes it better than that one phrase that’s popular in Puerto Rican culture, “Mejor malo conocido que bueno por conocer.” Even though that phrase has some serious issues, it’s the mentality of the many people who are driven by the fear that’s perpetuated by those in power who are actually the ones with something to lose. That’s why I hope that one day, every Puerto Rican, no matter their age, ideology, or whatever kind of differences we could have, will understand that we are a powerful people and that, when it comes to our nationality and our commitment to our country, no government should stand in the way of our dignity and welfare.