List of political parties in Puerto Rico

This article lists political parties in Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico has a hybrid 'first past the post' electoral system, in which a voter can vote by party, by candidate or both. To qualify as an official political party (and thus be able to appear on the printed state electoral ballot) a party must meet the criteria set forth by the Puerto Rico Electoral Law. These criteria categorizes political parties as follows:

• Principal Party - one that obtained at least 3% of the straight-ticket party votes cast in the prior general election, or 7% of the party-label votes for the governor & resident commissioner, or 5% of the gubernatorial candidate votes.
• Principal Party of the Majority - one that obtained the majority of governor candidate votes cast in the prior general election.
• Party by Petition - one that has submitted the minimum number of signatures required for new registration (currently 5 percent of the total of all votes cast for governor in the prior general election)

Political parties meeting the stated criteria are certified and inscribed by the State Elections Commission.

Registered parties

Present

As of May 15, 2009, Puerto Rico has three registered electoral parties:

Unregistered parties

As of January 2, 2009, the following parties are unregistered since they did not meet the minimal vote percentage in the November 4, 2008 election to stay registered as per the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico law, and have not met the requirements to re-apply for recognition:

Past

Unregistered parties

A number of unregistered political parties and organizations exist in Puerto Rico outside of the electoral arena. These organizations span the entire political spectrum:

• Movimiento Socialista de Trabajadores (Socialist Workers Movement) - Socialist Revolutionary organization, with strong bases in the trade union and student movement. Bandera Roja - Periodical, in Spanish
• Hostosian National Independence Movement (MINH) - (Umbrella organization in favor of pro independence and nationalist movements) - Movimiento Independentista Nacional Hostosiano
• Pro ELA - In favor of a freely associated republic status.
• United Statehooders - Estadistas Unidos.
• Socialist Front - An umbrella of socialist organizations.
• Puerto Rican Nationalist Party
• Republican Party of Puerto Rico - The Republican Party of Puerto Rico (Spanish: Partido Republicano) is an affiliate of the national Republican Party in Puerto Rico.
• Democratic Party of Puerto Rico - The Democratic Party of Puerto Rico (Spanish: Partido Demócrata) is an affiliate of the national Democratic Party in Puerto Rico.
• Movimiento Unión Soberanista - in favor of a sovereign Puerto Rico

See also

• Politics of Puerto Rico
• List of political parties by country
• List of political parties in the United States
• Puerto Rican Independence Movement
• Political party strength in Puerto Rico

References

External links

Party sites

• New Progressive Party (PNP)
• Puerto Ricans for Puerto Rico (PRPR)
• Commonwealth Elections Commission of Puerto Rico (see: General Information)
• Popular Democratic Party of Puerto Rico (PPD)
• Socialist Workers Movement (MST)
• Republican Party of Puerto Rico

Miscellaneous links

• CIA World Factbook: Puerto Rico
• Elections in Puerto Rico
• Puertorican Politics Portal