Puerto Rico’s new Gov. Ricardo Rossello vows to push for statehood

Puerto Rico’s new governor was sworn in Monday, vowing an urgent push for statehood to cure its “colonial condition” at the root of a dire economic crisis.

Gov. Ricardo Rossello, 37, proposed several measures aimed at alleviating the crisis shortly after he was sworn in at midnight. Among them is a proposal to hold a referendum that would ask voters whether they prefer statehood or independence.

Many argue that Puerto Rico’s political status has contributed to its decade-long crisis that has prompted an exodus of 200,000 people fleeing to the U.S. mainland in recent years.

“The United States cannot pretend to be a model of democracy for the world while it discriminates against 3.5 million of its citizens in Puerto Rico, depriving them of their right to political, social and economic equality under the U.S. flag,” Rossello said in his inaugural speech, delivered in Spanish. “There is no way to overcome Puerto Rico’s crisis given its colonial condition.”

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Ricardo Antonio "Ricky" Rosselló Nevares[a] (born March 7, 1979) is a Puerto Rican politician and the 12th and current Governor of Puerto Rico. He is also the President of the New Progressive Party which advocates for Puerto Rico to become a state of the United States. He is also a college professor and researcher.

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