Puerto Rico residents are set to choose a new governor in the Nov. 3 election after one of the most turbulent periods in the U.S. territory’s history, marked by natural disasters, economic crisis, political upheaval and now a pandemic, the Wall Street Journal reported. The two main candidates—Pedro Pierluisi, a former secretary of justice and Puerto Rico representative in Congress, and Carlos Delgado, the longtime mayor of Isabela—are running neck and neck. They have promised a host of policies to revive the battered economy as pandemic restrictions and social-distancing measures curtail tourism and other business activities. Pierluisi calls for rapid investment of federal disaster funds, reduced tax rates for small businesses and expanded broadband infrastructure. As a member of the pro-statehood New Progressive Party, he argues that Puerto Rico’s economic development ultimately hinges on becoming the 51st state. Delgado—a member of the Popular Democratic Party, which supports keeping the island a U.S. territory with more autonomy—promotes a revitalization plan that involves tapping federal funding but not seeking statehood. He proposes reviving the economy by creating tax-free zones for young entrepreneurs, nurturing industries like aeronautics that have shown promise on the island and bolstering science and technology education. The territory had been grappling with a decadelong recession and a bankruptcy declaration when Hurricane Maria struck in 2017, destroying tens of thousands of homes and wiping out the island’s electrical grid. In the aftermath, a contracting scandal and longstanding concerns over corruption led Congress and the White House to tighten controls over federal recovery funding.
