The politics of Puerto Rico take place in the framework of a democratic republic form of government that is under the jurisdiction and sovereignty of the United States Congress as an organized unincorporated territory. Since the 1898 invasion of Puerto Rico by the United States during the Spanish–American War, politics in Puerto Rico have been significantly shaped by its status as territory of the United States. The nature of Puerto Rico's political relationship with the United States is the subject of ongoing debate in Puerto Rico, in the United States, the United Nations and the international community, with all major political parties in the archipelago calling it a colonial relationship.
José Celso Barbosa Alcala was a Puerto Rican physician, sociologist and political leader. Known as the father of the statehood movement in Puerto Rico, Barbosa was the first Puerto Rican, and one of the first persons of African descent to earn a medical degree in the United States.
The New Progressive Party is a political party in Puerto Rico that advocates statehood. The PNP is one of the two major parties in Puerto Rico with significant political strength and currently holds both the seat of the governor and of the resident commissioner.
Bolívar Pagán Lucca was a Puerto Rican historian, journalist, and politician.
The Union of Puerto Rico, also known as the Unionist Party, was a major political party in Puerto Rico in the early 20th century. The Union of Puerto Rico was known as the dominant political party of the island from 1904 to 1932. UPR founder Luis Muñoz Rivera also founded La Democracia, which effectively acted as the UPR publication. On 19 February 1904, the Union of Puerto Rico party became the first mass party to advocate for independence for Puerto Rico in the form of a sovereign nation.
Partido Republicano Puertorriqueño was a political party founded in Puerto Rico on July 4, 1899. The party dissolved in 1924 when it split into two factions, both factions forming alliances with other local parties. It was led by Dr. José Celso Barbosa.
The Republican Union was a pro-statehood political party in Puerto Rico, that also contemplated total autonomy in the case that U.S. statehood was denied. Its president was Rafael Martínez Nadal. It existed from 1932 to 1940. Together with the Socialist Party, it was part of an electoral alliance known as Coalition.
The Federal Party was a short-lived political party in Puerto Rico.
Jenniffer Aydin González Colón is a Puerto Rican politician who is the governor-elect of Puerto Rico and currently serves as the 20th Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico. González has served in leadership positions in the New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico (PNP) and in the Republican Party of the United States. These positions included being the chairwoman of the Puerto Rico Republican Party, speaker and minority leader of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico, and vice-chair of the PNP. González is the second-youngest person to be elected Resident Commissioner and the first woman to hold the role.
The Partido Estadista Republicano was a political party in Puerto Rico that operated from 1956 to 1968. Its president was Miguel A. García Méndez. The party formed in 1952 after Partido Estadista Puertorriqueño became "Partido Estadista Republicano". It dissolved in 1968 after a split in the party forced it to fold, giving way to Partido Nuevo Progresista.
Partido Liberal Neto, Auténtico y Completo was a political party in Puerto Rico from 1937 to 1948.
The Puerto Rican Autonomist Party was a political party in Puerto Rico founded in 1887. The Party was founded in Ponce, Puerto Rico, and its first chairman was Román Baldorioty de Castro. He was followed by Martin Corchado, a prominent physician from Ponce. Juan Hernández López was one of the co-authors of its program in 1897.
The Liberal Reformist Party was a political party in Puerto Rico founded by Pedro Gerónimo Goyco, José Julián Acosta and Roman Baldorioty de Castro in 1870. It was the first political party ever to be established in Puerto Rico.
The Unconditional Spanish Party was a loyalist conservative political party in Puerto Rico during Spanish colonial times. It was founded in November 1870 as the Partido Liberal Conservador, later changing its name to Partido Incondicional Español in 1873. The party favored traditionalist assimilation into the political party system of Spain. It purchased the newspaper Boletín Mercantil to serve as the party's official organ for disseminating its conservative views. Most of its members belonged to the Puerto Rican Volunteers Corps.
Leopoldo Figueroa a.k.a. "The deacon of the Puerto Rican Legislature", was a Puerto Rican politician, journalist, medical doctor and lawyer. Figueroa, who began his political career as an advocate of Puerto Rican Independence, was the co-founder of the "Independence Association", one of three political organizations which merged to form the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party. Figueroa, had changed political ideals and in 1948, was a member of the Partido Estadista Puertorriqueño. That year, he was the only member of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives who did not belong to the Partido Popular Democrático (PPD), and the only Representative to oppose the PPD's approval of what became known as the Ley de la Mordaza, which violated the civil rights of those who favored Puerto Rican Independence. On December 22, 2006, the Puerto Rican Legislature approved a law declaring every September 21, Leopoldo Figueroa Carreras Day.
Partido Republicano Puro, also known as Partido Constitucional Histórico, was a political party that existed in Puerto Rico from 1924 to 1932. The party's main goal was the annexation of Puerto Rico into the American Union as a state. It resulted from a split of Partido Republicano de Puerto Rico on May 4, 1924. Its president was Rafael Martínez Nadal. The party dissolved in 1932 when it joined members of the conservative end of the Alianza Puertorriqueña to form Partido Unión Republicana.
Historia de los Partidos Políticos Puertorriqueños (1898–1956) is Bolívar Pagán's 1959 flagship two-volume set on Puerto Rico's political parties. It covers political parties in the years since the American invasion of 1898 through the year 1956.
The Puerto Rican Reformist Party was a short-lived Puerto Rican political party. The Puerto Rican Reformist Party was founded in 1948 after the Liberal Party decided to rename themselves.
Gubernatorial elections were held on Tuesday, 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. This election is historic as it marks the first time since 1952 in which a candidate from the Puerto Rican Independence Party came runner-up in a gubernatorial race, the first time since 1964 in which the incumbent governing party was re-elected after two terms in office, the second time Puerto Rico has elected a female governor, with the first time being in 2000 with Sila María Calderón. This election also saw the Popular Democratic Party lose control of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico and finish third for the first time in its entire history in a gubernatorial election, albeit retaining a majority of mayoral races and its candidate for Resident Commissioner, Pablo Hernández Rivera, won in a landslide.
