Puerto Rico Governor Jenniffer González wants Democrats to push in 2027 to make Puerto Rico the 51st state, after a congressional session in which she did not promote federal legislation on the matter. On Thursday she said her Washington agenda will stay focused on advancing statehood, securing fair Medicaid funding, moving the island to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), strengthening the economy and expanding development opportunities.
González has backed President Donald Trump’s efforts. Democrats just won broad victories in legislative and state elections, possibly leaving them with about 260 of 435 House seats and between 54 and 56 of 100 Senate seats. In this session, Republican leadership blocked a bill by Resident Commissioner Pablo José Hernández and Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York seeking a transition of up to 15 years from the Nutrition Assistance Program (PAN) to SNAP.
A Medicaid funding reauthorization, likely pushed to 2027, remains pending; it would avert a fiscal cliff of about $3.7 billion a year for Puerto Rico’s health industry next October. González recently signed a resolution urging Trump and Republican-controlled Congress leadership, in office until December, to advance a statehood admission bill. Trump and much of the Republican leadership oppose statehood.
She called on Democratic leaders to turn public statements of support into action. The Democratic National Committee’s latest resolution urged a binding plebiscite among statehood, free association and independence, like the one the House approved in December 2022 with only 16 Republican votes. González, president of the New Progressive Party (PNP), campaigned last week for Republican Rep. María Elvira Salazar, who leads by just over 1,000 votes in Miami’s District 27.