Puerto Rico

What Do Senate Runoffs in Georgia Have to Do With Puerto Rico Statehood?

The thinking that statehood for Puerto Rico means more Democrats in Congress is flawed and based on a simplistic view of the politics of Puerto Rico

Puerto Rican flag is seen outside the Governor's residence
Alejandro Granadillo/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

As Georgia's GOP Sen. David Perdue was forced into a runoff with Democrat Jon Ossoff, Republicans warned about what is at stake in the coming election: statehood for Puerto Rico, NBC News reports.

For those who tuned out after President-elect Joe Biden defeated President Donald Trump, the election frenzy hasn’t stopped. Instead, it has consolidated in Georgia, where future control of the U.S. Senate will be decided.

The state has seen a burst of campaign messaging, spin and rhetoric around incumbents Perdue and Sen. Kelly Loeffler, also a Republican, as they attempt to defeat their respective Democratic challengers, Ossoff and the Rev. Raphael Warnock.

One of the first missives was in a press release from the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the GOP senators’ political arm, with the Puerto Rico warning.

In a Nov. 24 statement, the Republican Party stated: "Ossoff supports statehood for DC and Puerto Rico and is open to ending the filibuster in the Senate," as one of its bullets in a research briefing that was titled "Ossoff and Warnock Are Too Extreme for Georgia."

Read the full story on NBCNews.com

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