Puerto Rico to Hold Democratic Presidential Primary on Sunday
Voters in Puerto Rico will participate in a Democratic presidential primary on Sunday, their sole opportunity to officially weigh in on the race for the White House. As in other U.S. territories, Puerto Rican voters cannot cast ballots in the general election but may participate in presidential primaries and send delegates to the Democratic and Republican national conventions. President Joe Biden, having already secured the Democratic nomination, faces minimal opposition on Sunday’s ballot.
Originally scheduled for March 17, the primary was moved due to cost-saving measures, including reduced polling places. Consequently, the primary is estimated to cost less than $60,000, significantly lower than the original $1 million budget. Unlike the Democrats, the Puerto Rico Republicans opted to forego their traditional primary and awarded their 23 delegates to former President Trump in a caucus-style vote. Trump was the sole candidate on the ballot.
Despite not being able to vote for president in November, Puerto Rico residents can still influence the Electoral College calculations. In 2020, both Biden and Trump campaigned in Puerto Rico, aiming to sway voters who could, in turn, influence their relatives on the mainland. Vice President Kamala Harris recently visited Puerto Rico to promote the Biden administration’s disaster relief efforts and attend a fundraiser. This trip came after Biden launched a new effort to target Latino voters.
According to a 2023 analysis by the Pew Research Center, approximately 5.8 million Puerto Ricans reside in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Notably, Florida, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, all considered battleground states, have significant Puerto Rican populations. In the 2020 election, Trump narrowly carried Florida and Pennsylvania, while Biden won by a slim margin.
Biden emerged victorious in the 2020 Puerto Rico primary, which was postponed twice to mid-July due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He garnered 62% of the vote, followed by Bernie Sanders with 15% and Elizabeth Warren with 14%. In 2016, Hillary Clinton similarly won with 61% of the vote, against Sanders’s 38%.
Sunday’s Primary Details:
– Date: Sunday, June 5, 2023
– Polling Hours: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET
– Coverage: The Associated Press will provide coverage of the Democratic presidential primary, the only contest on the ballot.
– Candidates: Biden, self-help author Marianne Williamson, and U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN), who suspended his campaign after Super Tuesday and endorsed Biden.
– Eligibility: Puerto Rico does not register voters by party; therefore, anyone who registered by March 29 is eligible to participate in the primary, provided they sign a document at the polls declaring themselves as Democrats.
– Delegate Allocation: Puerto Rico’s 55 pledged Democratic delegates will be allocated according to the national party’s standard rules: 12 at-large delegates, 7 PLEO (party leaders and elected officials) delegates, and 36 delegates from the state’s eight senate districts.
– Qualification Threshold: Candidates need to receive at least 15% of the statewide vote to qualify for any statewide delegates and 15% of the vote in a congressional district to qualify for delegates in that district.
Biden is widely favored to win the primary. The initial results may be decisive in determining the statewide winner if they indicate a level of support consistent with other contests this year. The AP will not make projections and will only declare a winner when it’s determined that the trailing candidates cannot close the gap.
Historically, turnout in Democratic primaries in Puerto Rico has varied based on the competitiveness of the race. In 2020, only 6,302 votes were cast, while in 2016, 89,188 Democrats voted. In 2008, nearly 387,000 votes were cast in the primary between Obama and Clinton.
Voters had until March 14 to request a mail-in absentee ballot, and early voting options were available to qualified individuals who requested it by March 9. Early voting will also be offered to inmates at correctional facilities on Friday.
Polls will close at 3 p.m. ET, with final results expected by 5 p.m. ET.
As of Sunday, there will be 113 days until the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and 191 days until the November general election.