The National Puerto Rican Equality Coalition (NAPREC), which has offices in Orlando and Washington, D.C., has expanded its free, bilingual civic hub ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections. The site gives the 9.3 million Puerto Ricans on the island and across the states, and any American, one place to check their voter registration, learn about the federal decisions that shape Puerto Rico and take that knowledge directly to Congress.
At the center of the project is a question many Americans never consider. A Puerto Rican who moves from San Juan to Orlando can vote for president as soon as they register. One who moves back to the island loses that right. Same citizen, same passport, same flag.
That gap shapes life for the 3.2 million U.S. citizens who live in Puerto Rico, a population larger than that of 18 states. Puerto Ricans have been citizens since 1917 and have served in every major American conflict since World War I. Yet in the 128 years since the island came under U.S. control in 1898, they have been unable to vote for president, have had no senators and are represented in Congress by a single member who cannot vote on final passage of legislation. NAPREC stresses that Puerto Rico’s questions are national questions, since decisions made in Washington about the island shape disaster aid, Medicaid, nutrition assistance, Jones Act costs and the reach of the Constitution itself…