 | |||
| |||
| |||
| Elections in Puerto Rico |
|---|
 |
The 2012 New Progressive Party primaries were the primary elections by which voters of the New Progressive Party (PNP) chose its nominees for various political offices of Puerto Rico for the 2012 general elections. They were held on March 18, 2012 and coincided with the Republican Party primaries in the island.
At the time of the primaries, the New Progressive Party had already chosen current Governor Luis Fortuño, as their gubernatorial candidate for reelection. He would be joined again in the ballot by current Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi. There was the possibility for a primary between Fortuño and aspiring candidate Iván González Cancel, but he wasn't certified by the Commission. González appealed the decision in the courts, but the case was still pending at the time of the primaries.
In the Senate, there were 14 sitting senators looking to retain their election spots. In the House, there were around 6 sitting at-large representatives as well. Also, some returning candidates from previous years, like Carlos Díaz, and other former officeholders, like María Milagros Charbonier and Zoé Laboy, were entering the political race. Current representative Liza M. Fernández was running for a Senate seat this time, while her husband, Angel Pérez, was running for a representative seat in District 6.
Sitting representative Cristóbal Colón Ruíz was also looking to gain an election spot to be mayor of Patillas, against sitting mayor Benjamín Cintrón. There were fifteen sitting mayor from the PNP that were challenged in primaries. [1]
Also, the amount of primaries per municipality and districts were few, when compared to previous years. As a result, the primaries were expected to be of low participation among the party members.
The New Progressive Party held primaries on 5 of the 8 senatorial districts.
San Juan
Arecibo
Mayagüez-Aguadilla
| Guayama
Humacao
|
|
|
The New Progressive Party held primaries on 18 of the 40 representative districts.
District 4District 6District 11
District 14District 16
District 18
District 19
District 21
District 22
| District 25
District 26
District 29
District 31
District 32
District 34
District 35
District 38
District 40
|
The New Progressive Party held primaries in 24 of 78 municipalities.
Aguada
AreciboCabo Rojo
Cayey
Ceiba
Cidra
Culebra
Florida
Guayanilla
Hormigueros
Humacao
Isabela
| Jayuya
Loíza
Luquillo
Manatí
Naguabo
PatillasRincónSalinas
San Sebastián
Toa Alta
Utuado
Vega Baja
|
| Candidate | Popular vote | Percentage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas Rivera Schatz | 234,259 | 17.22% | |
| Margarita Nolasco | 186,660 | 13.72 | |
| Melinda Romero | 177,990 | 13.08 | |
| Itzamar Peña | 175,593 | 12.90 | |
| Larry Seilhamer | 166,729 | 12.25 | |
| Lucy Arce | 142,747 | 10.49 | |
| Héctor Morales | 135,381 | 9.95 | |
| Kimmey Raschke | 130,414 | 9.58 | |
| Others | 10,889 | 0.82 | |
San Juan
Arecibo
Mayagüez-Aguadilla
| Guayama
Humacao
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Candidate | Popular vote | Percentage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jenniffer González | 229,930 | 16.71% | |
| José "Pichy" Torres Zamora | 173,978 | 12.65% | |
| José Aponte | 171,611 | 12.47% | |
| Lourdes Ramos | 158.932 | 11.57% | |
| María Milagros Charbonier | 145,890 | 10.60% | |
| José Kikito Meléndez | 142,942 | 10.42% | |
| José Chico | 134,983 | 9.81% | |
| Nélson Alonso | 84,634 | 6.15% | |
| Yumary Peña | 81,726 | 5.94% | |
| Jorge A. Irizarry | 38,401 | 2.79% | |
| Others | 12,760 | .93% | |
On the same day of the primaries, PPD Electoral Commissioner Eder Ortíz, claimed he had evidence of fraud from the PNP primaries. [2]
Senators Evelyn Vázquez (District IV) and José Emilio González (District III) had their candidatures at risk. Vázquez win over Benjamín Velázquez was close and could go to a recount, [3] while José Emilio González claimed there were irregularities that could have led to his loss. [4]
There was a lot of controversy surrounding the primaries for the House of Representatives District 6. Both candidates, Angel Pérez and Antonio Soto, have exchanged leads and have been announced as winners after different vote counts. [5] [6] Pérez, who had initially appeared as the loser, claimed there was fraud in the election, and accused Guaynabo mayor, Héctor O'Neill, of orchestrating it. [7] When Pérez was announced as the real winner, O'Neill, who supported Pagán's rival, went into a rant on a radio interview against his own party. [8]
Several sitting mayors from the PNP lost their candidacies for the elections. Some of them were Benjamín Cintrón (from Patillas), Lemuel Soto (Arecibo), and Maritza Meléndez (Naguabo). [9]
Jorge Adolfo de Castro-Font is a former Puerto Rican senator and former member of the House of Representatives. Originally, he was a member of the Popular Democratic Party (PPD) but became an independent representative in 2001 after inner disputes with his party. In 2002, he became a member of the New Progressive Party (PNP) and was elected Senator in 2004 and 2008, despite inner struggles within the party and legal issues.
Melinda Kathleen Romero Donnelly is a Puerto Rican politician, and former senator and Representative for the New Progressive Party (PNP). She is the youngest daughter of former Governor of Puerto Rico Carlos Romero Barceló and Kate de Romero. During a break from her political career, Romero worked as a journalist for the Caribbean Business newspaper.
Héctor Javier Martínez Maldonado is a former Puerto Rican politician, attorney and former senator of Puerto Rico. He served as senator of the District of Carolina from 2004 until 2011. Martínez was convicted of bribery by a federal jury on March 8, 2011 and is involve in William’s situation helping the federal government because he served and apparently is making a deal with the federal government. after he resigned his seat on March 12, 2011.
José Emilio González Velázquez is a Puerto Rican politician and Senator. He has been a member of the Senate of Puerto Rico since 2004.
General elections were held in Puerto Rico on Tuesday, November 6, 2012, to elect the officials of the Puerto Rican government that would serve for the next four years, most notably the Governor of Puerto Rico. A status referendum was held on the same date.
The 2008 New Progressive Party primaries were the primary elections by which voters of the New Progressive Party (PNP) chose its nominees for various political offices of Puerto Rico, namely the position of governor, for the 2008 general elections. Resident Commissioner Luis Fortuño was selected as the nominee at the primary elections held on March 9, 2008. He would go on to win the 2008 general election as well.
The 2008 Popular Democratic Party primaries were the primary elections by which voters of the Popular Democratic Party (PPD) chose its nominees for various political offices of Puerto Rico for the 2008 general elections. They were held on March 9, 2008. Incumbent Governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá faced no opposition for his candidacy, making him the official candidate for the elections.
José Luis Rivera Guerra is a Puerto Rican politician affiliated with the New Progressive Party (PNP). He was a member of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives representing the 17th District from 2000 to 2013. He was reelected in 2016. He resigned on July 31, 2018.
José Ernesto "Pichy" Torres Zamora is a Puerto Rican politician and former Secretary General of the New Progressive Party (PNP). He was a member of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives from June 10, 2010, when he replaced Iris Miriam Ruíz, until 2013. He won a seat in the PR House of Representatives in 2016 and currently he serves as the Speaker Pro Tempore of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives.
A constitutional referendum was held in Puerto Rico on 19 August 2012. Voters were asked whether they approve of two amendments to the constitution: one to eliminate the absolute right to bail and the other to decrease the number of members of the Legislative Assembly. Despite support from the party in government and part of the main opposition party, both amendments were rejected by voters.
Ángel Pérez Otero is a Puerto Rican politician, and former mayor of Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. He was a member of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives from 2005 to 2012.
Antonio "Tony" Soto is a Puerto Rican politician affiliated with the New Progressive Party (PNP). He was elected to the Puerto Rico House of Representatives in 2012 and served until 2021, representing District 6.
Catherine Julissa Nolasco Ortíz is a Puerto Rican politician affiliated with the New Progressive Party (PNP). She was a member of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives from 2009 to 2013 representing District 23.
Pedro Iván "Banchy" Cintrón Rodríguez is a Puerto Rican politician affiliated with the New Progressive Party (PNP). He was a member of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives from 2005 to 2013 representing District 29.
Benjamín "Bengie" Cintrón Lebrón was a Puerto Rican politician and former mayor of Patillas. Cintrón was affiliated with the New Progressive Party (PNP) and served as mayor from 2001 to 2013.
General elections were held in Puerto Rico on November 3, 2020, to elect the officials of the Puerto Rican government who will serve from January 2021 to January 2025, most notably the position of Governor and Resident Commissioner. In addition, there was a non-binding status referendum to ask voters if Puerto Rico should become the 51st state of the Union.
The 2024 Puerto Rico gubernatorial election will be held on November 5, 2024, to elect the governor of Puerto Rico, concurrently with the election of the Resident Commissioner, the Senate, the House of Representatives, and the mayors of the 78 municipalities. Incumbent New Progressive Party Governor Pedro Pierluisi Urrutia ran for re-election to a second term in office, but lost the PNP primary to Resident Commissioner Jenniffer Gonzalez Colon.
The 2020 Puerto Rican municipal election was held on November 3, 2020, to elect the mayors of the 78 municipalities of Puerto Rico, concurrently with the election of the Governor, the Resident Commissioner, the Senate, and the House of Representatives. The winners were elected to a four-year term from January 3, 2021, to January 3, 2025.
The 2016 Puerto Rican municipal election was held on November 8, 2016, to elect the mayors of the 78 municipalities of Puerto Rico, concurrently with the election of the Governor, the Resident Commissioner, the Senate, and the House of Representatives. The winners were elected to a four-year term from January 3, 2017, to January 3, 2021.
The 2024 Puerto Rican municipal election will be held on November 5, 2024, to elect the mayors of the 78 municipalities of Puerto Rico, concurrently with the election of the Governor, the Resident Commissioner, the Senate, the House of Representatives, a Status referendum and a Presidential straw poll. The winners will be elected to a four-year term from January 3, 2025, to January 3, 2029.
