| Post: | Resident Commissioner |
| Body: | Puerto Rico |
| Insignia: | Seal of the United States House of Representatives.svg |
| Incumbent: | Jenniffer González |
| Incumbentsince: | January 3, 2017 |
| Seat: | Puerto Rico |
| Department: | United States House of Representatives |
| Termlength: | Four years, renewable |
| Formation: | January 2, 1900 |
| First: | Federico Degetau |
| Salary: | US$174,000 |
| State: | Puerto Rico |
| District Number: | AL |
| Image Name: | PR01_109.gif |
| Image Width: | 300 |
| Representative: | Jenniffer González-Colón |
| Member Type: | Resident Commissioner |
| Party: | Republican |
| Residence: | Carolina |
| English Area: | 3,515 |
| Population: | 3,193,694 |
| Population Year: | 2019 |
| Median Income: | 14,412 |
| Percent White: | 6.8 |
| Percent Black: | 8.5 |
| Percent Asian: | 0.2 |
| Percent Native American: | 0.4 |
| Percent Hispanic: | 80.5 |
| Percent Other Race: | 3.6 |
| Percent Blue Collar: | 20.5 |
| Percent White Collar: | 67.9 |
| Percent Gray Collar: | 11.6 |
The resident commissioner of Puerto Rico is a non-voting member of the United States House of Representatives elected by the voters of the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico every four years, the only member of the House of Representatives who serves a four-year term. Because the commissioner represents the entire territory of Puerto Rico irrespective of its population, and is not subject to congressional apportionment like those House members representing the 50 states, Puerto Rico's at-large congressional district is the largest congressional district by population in all of the United States.
Commissioners function in every respect as a member of Congress, including sponsoring legislation and serving on congressional committees, where they can vote on legislation,[1] but they cannot vote on the final disposition of legislation on the House floor.[2] They receive a salary of $174,000 per year[3] and are identified as Member of Congress.[1]
The current commissioner is Jenniffer González-Colón of the New Progressive Party (PNP), the first woman to hold the post.[4] She is also affiliated with the Republican Party (R) at the national level.
Other U.S. territories have a similar representative position called a delegate.
The United States Congress had seated non-voting "delegates" from various territories since 1794 as the country expanded across North America; these territories were all eventually admitted as states. The position of delegate was a legislative position with a two-year term, just like a member of Congress.[5]
The United States acquired several overseas possessions as a result of the Spanish–American War. While the House of Representatives voted in 1900 for Puerto Rico to select a delegate, Congress instead devised a new form of territorial representative in the resident commissioner. United States Senator John Coit Spooner argued that granting a territory a delegate implied that it was on the path to statehood, which he asserted was not guaranteed for the new possessions acquired in the war, such as Puerto Rico and the Philippines. In fact, more than a century later, neither has become a state. (Puerto Rico remains a U.S. territory, while the Philippines became an independent republic in 1946.)
The original resident commissioner positions served a two-year term,[6] though it was later extended to four years starting in 1920.[7] [8] The position also had executive responsibility in addition to legislative ones. The term had been used as to parts of the British Empire (see resident commissioner), but in an almost opposite sense; sent or recognized as the Crown's representative to manage a territory. In the American sense, resident commissioner always refers to a representative of a territory to the national government.
This representation has evolved over time. At first, the resident commissioner could not even be present on the floor of the House of Representatives; floor privileges were granted in 1902. In 1904, the officeholder gained the right to speak during debate and serve on the Committee on Insular Affairs, which had responsibility for the territories gained in the Spanish-American War.
In 1933, Resident Commissioner Santiago Iglesias was appointed to additional committees, and each of his successors has served on other committees also. But only in 1970 did the resident commissioner gain the right to vote in committees, gain seniority, or hold leadership positions.
The present-day resident commissioner, like the delegates from other territories and the District of Columbia, has almost all of the rights of other House members, including being able to sponsor bills and offer amendments and motions. Territorial representatives remain unable to vote on matters before the full House.
| Resident Commissioner | Party | U.S. Affiliation | Years | Cong– ress | Electoral history | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District established March 4, 1901 | ||||||||||
| align=left | Federico Degetau y González | Republican | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1901 – March 3, 19053 years, 364 days | Elected in 1900. Re-elected in 1902. Retired. | ||||
| align=left | Tulio Larrínaga | Unionist | nowrap | March 4, 1905 – March 3, 19115 years, 364 days | Elected in 1904. Re-elected in 1906. Re-elected in 1908. Retired. | |||||
| align=left | Luis Muñoz Rivera | Unionist | nowrap | March 4, 1911 – November 15, 19165 years, 256 days | Elected in 1910. Re-elected in 1912. Re-elected in 1914. Re-elected in 1916. Died. | |||||
| Vacant | nowrap | November 16, 1916 – August 6, 1917 | ||||||||
| align=left | Félix L. M. Córdova Dávila | Unionist | nowrap | August 7, 1917 – April 11, 193214 years, 238 days | Elected to finish Rivera's term. Re-elected in 1920. Re-elected in 1924. Re-elected in 1928. Resigned to become Justice of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico. | |||||
| Vacant | nowrap | April 12, 1932 – April 14, 1932 | ||||||||
| align=left | José Lorenzo Pesquera | Independent | nowrap | April 15, 1932 – March 3, 1933322 days | Elected to finish Dávila's term. Retired. | |||||
| align=left | Santiago Iglesias Pantín | Socialist | Socialist Party of America | nowrap | March 4, 1933 – December 5, 19396 years, 276 days | Elected in 1932. Re-elected in 1936. Died. | ||||
| Vacant | nowrap | December 5, 1939 – December 26, 1939 | ||||||||
| align=left | Bolívar Pagán | Republican Union | nowrap | December 26, 1939 – January 3, 19455 years, 1 day | Appointed to finish Pantín's term. Elected in 1940. Retired. | |||||
| align=left | Jesús T. Piñero Jiménez | Popular Democratic | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1945 – September 2, 19461 year, 242 days | Elected in 1944. Resigned to become Governor of Puerto Rico. | ||||
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US Party Affiliation
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| No. | Resident Commissioner | Party | Affiliation | Years | Cong– ress | Electoral history | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | align=left | Antonio Fernós-Isern | Popular Democratic | Democratic | nowrap | September 11, 1946 – January 3, 1965 18 years, 23 days | Appointed to finish Piñero's term. Re-elected in 1948. Re-elected in 1952. Re-elected in 1956. Re-elected in 1960. Retired. | ||||
| 2 | align=left | Santiago Polanco Abreu | Popular Democratic | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1965 – January 3, 1969 4 years | Elected in 1964. Lost re-election. | ||||
| 3 | align=left | Jorge Luis Córdova | New Progressive | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1969 – January 3, 1973 4 years | Elected in 1968. Lost re-election. | ||||
| 4 | align=left | Jaime Benítez | Popular Democratic | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1973 – January 3, 1977 4 years | Elected in 1972. Lost re-election. | ||||
| 5 | align=left | Baltasar Corrada del Río | New Progressive | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1977 – January 3, 1985 8 years | Elected in 1976. Re-elected in 1980. Retired to run for mayor of San Juan. | ||||
| 6 | align=left | Jaime Fuster | Popular Democratic | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1985 – March 3, 1992 7 years, 60 days | Elected in 1984. Re-elected in 1988. Resigned to become Justice of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico. | ||||
| 7 | align=left | Antonio Colorado | Popular Democratic | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1992 – January 3, 1993 305 days | Appointed to finish Fuster's term. Lost election to full term. | ||||
| 8 | align=left | Carlos Romero Barceló | New Progressive | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2001 8 years | Elected in 1992. Re-elected in 1996. Lost re-election. | ||||
| 9 | align=left | Aníbal Acevedo Vilá | Popular Democratic | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 2001 – January 3, 2005 4 years | Elected in 2000. Retired to run for Governor of Puerto Rico. | ||||
| 10 | align=left | Luis Fortuño | New Progressive | Republican | nowrap | January 3, 2005 – January 3, 2009 4 years | Elected in 2004. Retired to run for Governor of Puerto Rico. | ||||
| 11 | align=left | Pedro Pierluisi | New Progressive | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 2009 – January 3, 2017 8 years | Elected in 2008. Re-elected in 2012. Retired to run for Governor of Puerto Rico. | ||||
| 12 | align=left | Jenniffer González-Colón | New Progressive | Republican | nowrap | January 3, 2017 – present | Elected in 2016. Re-elected in 2020. Retiring to run for Governor of Puerto Rico. |