Jenniffer González-Colón

The Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico is a congressional Elected Official chosen by the People of Puerto Rico in each General Election to be their authorized representative before the Federal Government.

The Resident Commissioner is a Member of Congress, with the right to participate in the proceedings of the U.S. House of Representatives, introduce legislation,  and speak before the chamber on behalf of Puerto Rico’s constituents. However:

The Resident Commissioner may only vote in the Committees to which she or he belongs
The Resident Commissioner has no right to vote for the final passing of Bills (not even those related to Puerto Rico) nor for election of the Speaker or other officials. There is no apportionment of districts by population for this office, so the one single person in the office represents five times as many citizens as the average Member of the House. Due to Puerto Rico being a US Territory and not a State, it is Congress that has full final authority to make policy decisions about the Island.  This authority proceeds from the US Constitution and was affirmed when the US acquired Puerto Rico in the 1899 Treaty of Paris.  

The Constitution of the United States, Article 4 Section 3, provides: “The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States(…)”

Jenniffer González-Colón was elected November 8th, 2016 as Puerto Rico’s sole Representative to the U.S. Congress, known as Resident Commissioner. The first woman to hold the office, Ms. Gonzalez-Colón received the most votes (over 718,000) of any elected official on the Island in that election.

A lifelong Republican activist for Puerto Rican statehood, Ms. González-Colón entered electiveoffice in a 2002 special Election, becoming the youngest member at the time of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives. She quickly rose through the ranks achieving the posts of Speaker of the House for four years  and Minority Leader for another four.

Her priorities as Puerto Rico’s voice in Congress include spearheading the economic recovery of Puerto Rico, securing equal treatment for Puerto Rico’s three and a half million U.S. Citizens in federal laws, regulations, services, and funding, and ensuring that Congress responds decisively to the overwhelming mandate of Puerto Rico’s voters for admission as the 51st state of the Union in both plebiscites by 61.3% in November 2012 and 97% in July 2017.