Puerto Rico votes in favor of statehood

Puerto Rico voted overwhelmingly in favor of statehood on Sunday in a referendum that begins the steps toward sending representatives to Washington, D.C.

According to The Wall Street Journal, 97 percent of voters chose statehood, though turnout was only about 23 percent. One-and-a-half percent voted for independence from the United States, according to Decision Desk HQ, while 1.3 percent voted to keep the current status of a territory of the United States.

{mosads}Puerto Rico will now put its “Tennessee plan” into action, meaning its governor will choose two senators and five representatives to go to Washington, D.C., to request statehood. 

President Trump signaled during his presidential campaign that he is open to Puerto Rico officially becoming a state.

Puerto Rico previously voted in favor of becoming a state in 2012, but statehood opponents said the voter turnout was not high enough to accurately reflect the will of the Puerto Rican people. Some fear that they will make the same case this time around.