The mayors of Puerto Rico encompass the different
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
s of the
municipalities of Puerto Rico
The municipalities of Puerto Rico (Spanish: ''municipios de Puerto Rico'') are the second-level administrative divisions in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. There are 78 such administrative divisions covering all 78 incorporated towns and cities ...
; each mayor being the highest-ranking officer of their corresponding municipality. Several laws existed that created the post of mayor in each municipality but they were all repealed in favor of a broad and encompassing law known as the
Autonomous Municipalities Act of 1991
Law No. 81 of 1991 —better known as the Autonomous Municipalities Act of 1991— is the extraconstitutional Puerto Rican law that regulates the local government of all the municipalities of Puerto Rico. It was enacted in order to repeal m ...
.
The mayors do not constitute a body, and are not required by law to do so,
but they have voluntarily assembled into two organizations:
* the Puerto Rico Mayors Association, which represents the mayors from the
Popular Democratic Party and
* the Puerto Rico Mayors Federation, which represents the mayors from the
New Progressive Party. The President of the Puerto Rico Mayors Federation in 2021 was
Gabriel Hernández-Rodríguez.
Each mayor is also the
commander-in-chief of its corresponding
municipal police.
Background
Historically mayors used to be minor political figures in the Puerto Rican landscape as the
executive branch of the government of Puerto Rico exerted an overarching authority over the municipalities.
However, in recent years, the executive branch has adopted a decentralized form of government and started to focus on statewide politics rather than on local or regional ones.
These policies have granted a high degree of autonomy to its municipalities and their mayors,
and has allowed certain highly populated municipalities with robust local economies —such as
Caguas
Caguas (, ) is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, and east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey. Caguas was founded ...
and
San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to:
Places Argentina
* San Juan Province, Argentina
* San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province
* San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province
* San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...
— to prosper and exercise a high degree of autonomy, while leaving others with mild or little population —such as
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
and
Moca— with challenges to overcome. Nevertheless, these policies have made mayors highly influential on the local, regional, and statewide
economy of Puerto Rico, as well as in its
politics
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...
and
society
A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Socie ...
. An example of this would be the
Willie Tax
The Willie Tax is the municipal 1% tax imposed on the residents of the city of Caguas, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociad ...
which was implemented independently in
Caguas
Caguas (, ) is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, and east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey. Caguas was founded ...
by its former mayor,
William Miranda Marín
William "Willie" Miranda Marín (September 23, 1940 – June 4, 2010) was the mayor of Caguas, Puerto Rico, from 1997 until his death in 2010.
Personal life
The son of José Miranda Gómez, a sugar cane cutter, and Rafaela Marín, a tobacco str ...
. The tax was subsequently adopted by other municipalities and eventually evolved into the statewide sales tax known as the
Puerto Rico Sales and Use Tax (IVU).
Today, mayors have become strong political
stewardesses and anchors for other politicians seeking support from the citizens living in their municipalities. It has also become increasingly common to involve and discuss political matters with the mayors, their assemblies, and the organizations to which they belong to, before implementing
public policies
Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a group decision-making, decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to Problem solving, solve or address relevant and Social issue, real-world problems, guided by a co ...
, and
approving or
veto
A veto is a legal power to unilaterally stop an official action. In the most typical case, a president or monarch vetoes a bill to stop it from becoming law. In many countries, veto powers are established in the country's constitution. Veto ...
ing
bill
Bill(s) may refer to:
Common meanings
* Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States)
* Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature
* Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer
* Bill, a bird or animal's beak
Plac ...
s.
Both the mayors and the central
government of Puerto Rico
The government of Puerto Rico is a republican form of government with separation of powers, subject to the jurisdiction and sovereignty of the United States.[Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...]
and the
Legislative Assembly, have been able to work in unison and
symbiotic
Symbiosis (from Greek , , "living together", from , , "together", and , bíōsis, "living") is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasit ...
ally to up bring Puerto Rico and its municipalities.
The Puerto Rico Mayors Association was founded in 1949 by
Felisa Rincón de Gautier
Felisa Rincón de Gautier (born Felisa Rincón Marrero)This name uses Spanish marriage naming customs; the first is the maiden family name '' "Rincón"'' and the second or matrimonial family name is ''"Gautier"''. (also known as Doña Fela) (Janua ...
. The Puerto Rico Mayors Federationwas founded in 1968 by
Carlos Romero Barceló as the Federation of Municipalities of Puerto Rico. The president of the Federation as of 2017 is
Carlos Molina Rodríguez, after succeeding
Hector O'Neill
In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...
.
Duties and powers
Mayors in Puerto Rico have the following duties:
* Organize, direct, and supervise all the administrative activities of the municipality
* Prepare the general budget of the municipality
* Administer the budget and handle credit transfers
* Hire professional, technical, and consulting services deemed necessary, convenient, or useful
* Supervise, administer, and authorize fund disbursements received by the municipality.
Requirements
The law states the following requirements to be a mayor in Puerto Rico. The candidate must:
*Be at least 21 years old.
*Know how to read and write.
*Be a
citizen of the United States
Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constituti ...
and
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
.
*Lived in the corresponding municipality for no less than a year before the election, and be a certified voter in it.
*Not be convicted of a
felony
A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...
or
misdemeanor
A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than adm ...
which involves moral deprivation.
*Not be destitute of employment for improper conduct.
*Not be declared mentally unfit by a court of law.
Removal from office
According to an amend signed in 2006, a mayor in Puerto Rico can be removed from office for the following reasons:
* Being convicted of a
felony
A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...
.
* Being convicted of a
misdemeanor
A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than adm ...
which involves moral deprivation.
* Incurring in immoral conduct.
* Incurring in illegal acts which imply abandoning detrimental to the public function, inexcusable and unjustifiable negligence or conduct hindering to the best public interests. Such conduct must have affected the interests of the population and the rights of its inhabitants, must be related to the administration of the position of mayor, and must substantial in nature.
To determine the latter, any person can present charges against a mayor in front of a committee, which will then evaluate them and submit a verdict.
Election
Like most political positions in Puerto Rico, mayors are elected every four years in a
general election
A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
. Voters registered as residents of each municipality vote for their respective mayors. As of now, there is no limit in terms for mayors.
Mayors 2021–2025
There are currently 41 mayors affiliated with the
Popular Democratic Party (PPD), 37 are affiliated with the
New Progressive Party (PNP). The longest tenured current mayor in the Commonwealth is the mayor of
Dorado,
Carlos López Rivera. López has been serving as mayor since being elected in 1987. The current term ends in January 2025, following the
2024 general election.
References
{{Current mayors of Puerto Rico, state=autocollapse
Government of Puerto Rico