Ricardo Rosselló, the Governor of Puerto Rico, has announced that he will step down on the 2nd of August. His announcement follows mass protests against him and his administration after the release of encrypted messages between the governor and members of his administration, where they traded homophobic and sexists messages.
Why is Rosselló Quitting?
On July 17, thousands of Puerto Ricans protested for the 5th consecutive day in Old San Juan, demanding for Governor Ricardo Rosselló’s resignation over leaked encrypted Telegram messages.
The Puerto Rican Centre for Investigative Journalism released 889 damning pages of messages sent between the governor and 11 close members of his administration. These messages contained misogynistic, profane and homophobic comments, as well as mockeries of victims of Hurricane Maria, a disaster Rosselló’s administration has been criticized for not handling appropriately.
Since the chats leaked on July 13, calls for the Governor’s resignation have continued to intensify.
A Partial Bow to Pressure
In a short video posted on Facebook, Rosselló said: “In spite of everything, I recognise that apologising isn’t enough, that only my work will help restore confidence. Facing that scenario, I announce to you that I will not seek reelection next year.”
This was not enough as Puerto Ricans expected the Governor to resign. A protester, Emmarie Morales, in the southeast coastal town of Patillawo spoke to the Times saying: “He’s stretching things out. We had hoped he’d taken the decision to resign. He’s making the people’s pain last longer.”
What Went Wrong?
A graduate of MIT with a doctorate in genetics, Rosselló, was elected governor in November 2016 after getting nearly 50% of the vote. The agitations against Rosselló have prompted at least four cruise ships to cancel visits to Puerto Rico. Officials feared the economy, which has suffered a decade-long recession and has an ongoing debt-crisis, could have plunged further if the governor failed to resign.
The governor initially wanted to finish his term and said he was prepared to defend himself against moves for his impeachment by legislators in the country.
However, this did not matter much to the citizens as they were determined to continue protesting until the governor relinquished his seat.
A Final Bow of Shame
Following unending protests and a move by the legislature to impeach him, the governor finally bowed to pressure and said he will leave office on August 2.
Who is next?
Following this decision and in line with the US territory’s constitution, Secretary of Justice Wanda Vázquez is next in line to succeed Rosselló, based on current cabinet vacancies.
However, protesters have vowed to oppose Vázquez as she is an ally of the governor.
According to Reuters, Pedro Pierluisi, a former Puerto Rico representative in the US Congress could possibly be the next governor. Pierluisi, a Washington corporate lawyer with a law firm, O’Neill & Borges, ran against Rosselló in the gubernatorial election in 2016 but lost in the primaries. If nominated and confirmed as secretary of state before the 2nd of August, Pierluisi could become Governor as soon as Rosello steps down.
