Puerto Rico Election News

The mainland of the USA wasn't the only place that had elections yesterday. Puerto Rico also had their elections. There were some very interesting results. First off, the governorship has changed hands from the Popular Democratic Party's Aníbal Acevedo Vilá, the incumbent, to the New Progressive Party's Luis Fortuño. It was an 11 point margin. The New Progressive Party is roughly allied with the mainland's Republican Party and is pro-statehood for Puerto Rico. The Popular Democratic Party is approximately aligned with the Democratic Party and promotes the so-called enhanced commonwealth status (*cough*unconstitutional*cough*). For once, the race wasn't as much about pro or anti statehood, Vilá has been indicted on 20 (?) federal corruption charges and the economy there is TEH SUCK. Fortuño promised to clean up everything and fix the economy. That seems to have won him the governorship.

The nonvoting representative to congress - that's all you get as a colony, ahem, unincorporated territory - is also of the New Progressive Party. Furtehrmore, it looks like their legislature just got pwnd by the New Progressive Party as well. I'm a little unsure as to the percentages, but it looks like they got over 50%.

It looks like interesting timing here...y'know, with HR 900 sitting out there, the pro-statehood party takes control of PR's government...very interesting.

Hat Tip Latino Pundit.

PS the Puerto Rico Independence Party recieved something around 1%. Ditto for the Puerto Ricans for Puerto Rico Party. Both will lose accreditation as parties if true.