In most presidential campaigns in the United States, the country's self-governing territory of Puerto Rico is a mere footnote, but the next one may be different.

Comments by rising Democratic hopeful Pete Buttigieg appearing to suggest that he supports the island of 3.2 million people becoming the 51st American state have added to expectations that its uneasy constitutional status may finally become an election issue on the mainland.

President Donald Trump has done his bit to ensure that Puerto Rico remains in the national spotlight, with relentless criticism of local authorities in the aftermath of the devastating hurricane damage in September 2017.

Trump is strongly opposed to sending additional recovery funds to the island, excoriating its leaders recently as corrupt officials who only "complain" and "ask for money."

The president has bristled at claims his administration has not done enough to help the islanders in their greatest hour of need and that the federal response to Hurricane Maria had been dilatory.

Puerto Ricans have been bemused by the onslaught, often delivered via Twitter, that has reinforced the views of many that they are second-class offshore Americans.

“Mr President, once again, we are not your adversaries, we are your citizens,” Governor Ricardo Rossello shot back this month in a tweet of his own in response to one from Trump saying the commonwealth's "government can't do anything right, the place is a mess – nothing works.” 

Earlier primary sought

The president need not worry about an island backlash. Even though Puerto Ricans are American citizens, they can't vote in presidential elections   

They can do so in presidential primaries. However，Enter Buttigieg, who, when questioned about statehood for Puerto Rico and Washington DC, said, “DC for sure. Puerto Rico, look the Puerto Ricans have some decisions to make but even there, I think on day one, I would make the case that they should at least have a voice in the electoral process for the presidency.”

His colleagues on the campaign trail, Elizabeth Warren and Julian Castro have already made visits to San Juan, the capital of the island, which offers 64 delegates, and there have been reports that local politicians have been pushing for an earlier primary date to solidify Puerto Rico's place in the limelight.

“We're working hard to make statehood a top-tier issue,” Manny Ortiz, an advisor to Rossello who's also a Democratic National Committee member, was quoted by Politico in February as saying, “Puerto Rico moving up the primary can only help highlight the issues that are important: the unequal treatment of citizens and the statehood issue.”

The island actually has a representative to the U.S. Congress, known as resident commissioner, but she – a woman (Jennifer Gonzalez-Colon) is holding the job for the first time – has no vote, except in committees. 

Last September, on Maria's first anniversary, Trump appeared to pour cold water on statehood claims when he told an interviewer, “Puerto Rico should not be thinking about statehood right now,” though he backed the idea during his bid for the White House.

Puerto Ricans have voted in five non-binding referendums on the issue of their constitutional status, the latest of which in 2017 backed statehood by 97 percent but on an abysmally low 23 percent turnout that was fostered by a boycott over the wording of the ballot. 

Bickering Congress

Ultimately, however, Congress would have to pass a law admitting the territory as a state and in late March, a bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced legislation that would do just that without a referendum – a move that would alarm those who would prefer a definitive vote from the people who matter most. 

"It's time to let the old battlelines fade away, it's time to end 120 years of colonialism," Democrat Darren Soto, whose Florida district has a significant Puerto Rican community, said at the launch.

Yet, the same Congress has just gone on a lengthy recess without reaching a deal on further hurricane relief, partly because of Trump's opposition, putting recovery efforts on the ground under threat.

Compounding the territory's problems is that it has been in financial straits for years. In 2016, it was humiliated by being placed under the control of a federal Financial Oversight and Management Board, created through a law signed by Barack Obama to oversee the restructuring of 72 billion U.S. dollars in debt. It is this state of virtual bankruptcy, which included a historic loan default, that has helped to fuel the president's disdain.

So, overall, it is a messy constitutional and economic picture for Puerto Rico that may well be played out over the 2020 presidential campaign. Given the partisan bickering in Washington and the island's own preoccupation with disaster recovery and financial stability, the status quo is, however, likely to remain for some time to come even if the territory gets a mention during the candidate debates.

(Cover: University of Puerto Rico students protest at a meeting of the Washington-appointed Financial Oversight and Management Board for the island, San Juan, March 31, 2017. /Reuters Photo)