All but 16 GOP representatives voted against the Bill to Let Puerto Rico Determine Its Future

• The House passed a bill that would allow Puerto Rico voters to choose between independence, statehood, and free association.
• Only 16 Republicans supported the bill along with all Democrats.
• Republicans opposed the bill partly because they are against Puerto Rico’s independence.

The House of Representatives voted by 233-191 marginThursday: Pass the Puerto Rico Status ActAll but 16 House Republicans voted against the measure. Every Democrat in the House voted for it.

The vote was presided over by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democratic Representative from New York who worked on the bill. She is also of Puerto Rican descent.

—bryan metzger (@metzgov) December 15, 2022

The bill would allow Puerto Rican voters to vote in a plebiscite next year. They could choose between independence, statehood, or to enter into a contract of free association with the United States.

The bill was a long-standing project of lawmakers, and its inclusion on the calendar this week was a surprise. A few Republicans had already approved the bill. co-sponsored the legislationIncluding Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar from Florida and Don Bacon from Nebraska. 

It also had the support of the territory’s Republican Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González-Colón who serves as a non-voting representative for the island in Congress.

Despite House passage of the bill, it is unlikely that it will be passed by the Senate. There, it would need at most 10 Republican supporters.

On Thursday, House Republicans cited a variety of reasons why they opposed the bill, including a lack in debate and the possibility it would lead to statehood. This is something they have long opposed.

—Tim Burchett (@timburchett) December 15, 2022

Chip Roy, a Republican from Texas, told Insider that at this moment in time, “I’m not interested in going down the road.” “We didn’t have a discussion about it, and I haven’t been a part in any of the debates. They’re trying desperately to get this through before Christmas.

Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican Representative from Georgia, told Insider that the bill was not “the right way to approach something like that.”

She said that she was not interested in Puerto Rico becoming an independent state and that she did not believe that Puerto Ricans should have the right to vote.

Here are 16 Republicans who voted in favor of the bill.

• Rep. Don Bacon from Nebraska
• Rep. Liz Cheney from Wyoming
• Rep. Rodney Davis from Illinois
• Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, Pennsylvania
• Rep. Mayra Flores in Texas
• Rep. Andrew Garbarino, New York
• Rep. Tony Gonzalez from Ohio
• Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, Washington
• Rep. Bill Huizenga, Michigan
• Rep. Dave Joyce from Ohio
• Rep. John Katko from New York
• Rep. Dan Newhouse from Washington
• Rep. Bill Posey, Florida
• Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar, New York
• Rep. Lloyd Smucker, Pennsylvania
• Rep. Fred Upton from Michigan