Rafael Hernández Colón (October 24, 1936 – May 2, 2019) was a Puerto Rican politician who served as the
governor of Puerto Rico
The governor of Puerto Rico () is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. Elected to a 4 year-term through popular vote by the residents of the archipelago and island, ...
from 1973 to 1977 and 1985 to 1993 for a total of three terms. An experienced politician, Hernández held the record for having been the youngest Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to date, having won his first term at the age of 36. Hernández was also the person to have run for governor the most times, a total of five. During his terms as governor, Hernández Colón's administrations were known for trying to invigorate the Puerto Rican economy as well as for defending the political status quo of the island. He is also the second longest-serving Puerto Rico Governor with 12 years of service due to his three terms.
Early years and education
Hernández Colón was born October 24, 1937, in Ponce, Puerto Rico, to Rafael Hernández Matos and Doraldina "Dora" Colón Clavell. Rafael and Dora married in 1934 and had three children. Rafael was the oldest. Rafael had two brothers José A. (born 1939) and César A. (1942). Hernández Colón graduated from
Valley Forge Military Academy and College in
Wayne, Pennsylvania
Wayne is an unincorporated community centered in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States, on the Main Line, a series of highly affluent Philadelphia suburbs located along the railroad tracks of the Pennsylvania Railroad and one of the ...
, then obtained a bachelor's degree in
political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
from
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
in 1956 where he graduated
with honors. In 1959, he obtained his degree in
law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...
from the
University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras, graduating ''
magna cum laude
Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...
'' and as
valedictorian
Valedictorian is an academic title for the class rank, highest-performing student of a graduation, graduating class of an academic institution in the United States.
The valedictorian is generally determined by an academic institution's grade poin ...
of his class. Between 1961 and 1965 he was a lecturer on civil procedure at the
Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico in Ponce.
Political career
Hernández Colón affiliated himself with the Popular Democratic Party of Puerto Rico (''Partido Popular Democrático'', PPD). He served as Associate Commissioner of Public Service under the governorship of
Roberto Sánchez Vilella
Roberto Sánchez Vilella (19 February 1913 – 24 March 1997) was the governor of Puerto Rico from 1965 to 1969. Sánchez Vilella successfully ran for governor in the 1964 elections for the ''Popular Democratic Party of Puerto Rico, Partido Po ...
. In 1965 he was named Secretary of the Department of Justice.
President of the Senate
Hernández Colón was elected to the
Senate of Puerto Rico in the 1968 elections, in which his party retained control of the Senate but lost the governorship and House of Representatives. As President of the Senate, Hernández Colón became the Popular Democratic Party's president and main opposition leader. As a Senator, he proposed a
constitutional amendment to lower the minimum voting age to 18, which passed in 1970. He also spearheaded efforts to persuade Congress to stop bombing practices on the island of
Culebra. On the issue of political status, he opposed Governor Ferré's creation of an Ad Hoc Committee for the Presidential Vote, alleging that it was a misleading effort to enhance the island's current Commonwealth status in accordance with the results of the
1967 status plebiscite. In
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...
, he successfully ran for
Governor of Puerto Rico
The governor of Puerto Rico () is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. Elected to a 4 year-term through popular vote by the residents of the archipelago and island, ...
, defeating the incumbent by approximately 95,000 votes, or 7.3%. He remains the last PDP gubernatorial candidate to have achieved victory with over 50% of votes.
First term (1973–1977)
During his first term, the island was wracked by recession, induced by the
1973 oil crisis
In October 1973, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) announced that it was implementing a total oil embargo against countries that had supported Israel at any point during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, which began after Eg ...
, which hit Puerto Rico particularly hard because of the many businesses that were directly related to petroleum processing in Puerto Rico. After enacting austerity measures and tax increases, the economy recovered by 1976.
In 1973, he appointed, alongside President
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
, an Ad Hoc Committee for Puerto Rico to enhance Puerto Rico's Commonwealth status pursuant to the people's mandate in the 1967 elections. The Committee rendered a report and proposal for a Compact of Permanent Union Between Puerto Rico and the United States that expanded Puerto Rico's autonomy over local affairs, expanded its right to participate in international matters, created a mechanism to object to the automatic application of federal laws, and allowed for the election of a delegate to the U.S. Senate.
President
Gerald Ford
Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...
, who replaced Nixon, did not react to the report until after the 1976 elections, when he proposed statehood for the island. According to Hernández Colón, his delayed response was due to political pressure by island Republicans, who supported Ford in his primary against
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
.
Nevertheless, the Compact was approved by the House Subcommittee on Insular Affairs.
In 1974,
''Time'' magazine recognized Rafael Hernández Colón as one of the world's young leaders.
Hernández Colón, Treasury Secretary
Salvador Casellas, and Resident Commissioner
Jaime Benítez successfully lobbied Congress for Section 936, which created a tax incentive for U.S. corporations that established in Puerto Rico. The incentive remained active until 1996, when Congress enacted a phase-out which ended in 2006. Its elimination is often credited as one of the main causes for Puerto Rico's current fiscal and economic crisis.
Hernández Colón also signed Law No. 80 of 1976, which required just cause for terminating employment. In 2018, Law 80 became a hotly debated issue when the governor proposed its elimination.
Hernández Colón lost the 1976 race for Governor to then
Mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, 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 responsibilitie ...
of
San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to:
* San Juan, Puerto Rico
* San Juan, Argentina
* San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines
San Juan may also refer to:
Places Arge ...
,
Carlos Romero Barceló
Carlos Antonio Romero Barceló (September 4, 1932 – May 2, 2021) was a Puerto Rican politician who served as the governor of Puerto Rico from 1977 to 1985. He was the second governor to be elected from the New Progressive Party (PNP). He als ...
, by 3%. He then lost again to Romero Barceló in 1980, in this second matchup by a slim margin of approximately 3,000 votes, or 0.2%.
Second and third terms (1985–1993)
Hernández Colón ran again against Romero Barceló in the November 1984 elections and was victorious by about 54,000 votes (48 to 45% respectively). He won re-election in the 1988 election, besting his main rival
Baltasar Corrada del Río
Baltasar Corrada del Río (April 10, 1935 – March 11, 2018) was a Puerto Rican politician. He held various high political offices in the island, including President of the Puerto Rico Civil Rights Commission, Resident Commissioner (1977–198 ...
by 49 to 46%.
As part of his 1984 electoral campaign, Hernández Colón released a musical album with Puerto Rican country music titled ''Ahora Es Que Vamos'' ("Here We Go Now").
In 1991, Hernández Colón signed a law stating that the only official language of Puerto Rico should be Spanish. The immediate effect was that English was no longer the second official language. While many applauded the governor's decision, on the other hand, supporters of the Commonwealth and the parties in favor of the American federal state interpreted this law as a threat to their ideologies. In 1993, his successor
Pedro Rosselló rescinded the law and reinstated English as the official language, alongside Spanish.
During this time Puerto Rico experienced an economic boom with GDP growth at 5% during the years 1987–1989 the highest since Operation Bootstrap and the Economic Boom in the United States. Unemployment dropped drastically in his term from an all-time high 25% in 1983 to 12.0% in 1990.
He lost popularity with the controversial Pabellón de Sevilla that was an attempt of a representation of Puerto Rico at the
Universal Exposition of Seville in 1992.
In January 1992 Hernández announced that he would not seek re-election. On January 11, he resigned as President of the
Popular Democratic Party, a post he had held for 23 years. Senator
Victoria Muñoz Mendoza
Victoria "Melo" Muñoz Mendoza (born December 24, 1940) is a former politician from Puerto Rico. She is the daughter of the first democratically elected governor of Puerto Rico, Luis Muñoz Marín, founder of the Popular Democratic Party and hi ...
succeeded him as president of the party and later became a gubernatorial candidate herself.
Personal life
On October 24, 1959, Hernández Colón married
Lila Mayoral Wirshing, daughter of the industrialist
Juan Eugenio Mayoral Renovales (1906-1967), founder of
Ponce Candy Industries. Rafael Hernández Colón and Lila Mayoral had four children: Rafael, Jose Alfredo, Dora Mercedes and
Juan Eugenio. The latter was elected to Puerto Rico's Senate. In early 2003, Lila Mayoral Wirshing died of cancer. Hernández Colón subsequently married attorney Nelsa López in late 2004. He had his main residence in his hometown of Ponce, in the
historic downtown district.
Retirement
Hernández Colón published various works specializing in law. Among his works are ''Procedimiento Civil: Trayectoria Histórica de la Autonomía Política Puertorriqueña'' and ''Nueva Tesis'' which discusses the Puerto Rican
Commonwealth
A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...
's political relationship with the United States.
In later years, Hernández Colón maintained his distance from public political engagement, but continued to be involved in
Puerto Rico
; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...
's political affairs assisting active politicians. He occasionally appeared at official events. For example, in December 2011, he publicly admitted before the Senate of Puerto Rico that "the U.S. Congress can do as it wishes with Puerto Rico."
Some political analysts speculated that Hernández exerted sizeable control over the PDP's party structure during his retirement from office, which may have rivaled the PDP president's.
Illness and death
On December 6, 2018, Hernández Colón announced he had been diagnosed with
leukemia
Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...
in November of that year.
[Archived.]
/ref> Hernández Colón died on May 2, 2019, at the age of 82. He was interred at Cementerio Católico San Vicente de Paul.''Entre aplausos y elogios despiden a Rafael Hernández Colón en Ponce: Cientos de ponceños hicieron fila dentro y en las afueras de la Fundación Biblioteca Rafael Hernández Colón para ofrecer sus condolencias a la familia del exmandatario.''
Jason Rodríguez Grafal. Ponce, Puerto Rico: La Perla del Sur. Year 36. Issue 1849 (May 8 to 14, 2019). Pages 3–5. Accessed May 8, 2019. Flags were flown at half-mast by the municipalities after his death.
Accolades
Hernández Colón was granted
honoris causa
An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...
degrees from
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
and
Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...
. He also had an honorary degree from the
Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico, where he served as a law professor in the university's Law School.
In 1985, Hernández Colón was awarded the
Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella
The Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella (''Orden al Mérito de Duarte, Sánchez y Mella'') is the principal order of the Dominican Republic. It was established on 24 February 1931 as the ''Juan Pablo Duarte Order of Merit'' (''Orden al M ...
by the government of the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...
. In 1987 he was awarded the
Cross of Isabella the Catholic by King
Juan Carlos I
Juan Carlos I (; Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 November 1975 until Abdication of Juan Carlos I, his abdic ...
and the government of
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. That same year he was awarded the "Grand Cordón del Libertador" by the government of
Venezuela
Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...
, the
Harvard Foundation Award, and the
Spirit of the Caribbean Award. In 1989 he was awarded the Olympic Order Award.
On October 18, 1991, at the Campoamor Theater in
Oviedo
Oviedo () or Uviéu (Asturian language, Asturian: ) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains th ...
, Spain, Hernández Colón received the
Prince of Asturias Award for Literature
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The fe ...
that was granted to the people of Puerto Rico by
Felipe de Borbón.
See also
*
List of governors of Puerto Rico
*
Club of Rome
The Club of Rome is a nonprofit, informal organization of intellectuals and business leaders whose goal is a critical discussion of pressing list of global issues, global issues. The Club of Rome was founded in 1968 at Accademia dei Lincei in R ...
*
Fundación Biblioteca Rafael Hernández Colón
Notes
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Hernandez Colon, Rafael
1936 births
2019 deaths
Deaths from leukemia in the United States
Democratic Party governors of Puerto Rico
Governors of Puerto Rico
Johns Hopkins University alumni
Popular Democratic Party members of the Senate of Puerto Rico
Politicians from Ponce
Puerto Rican party leaders
Puerto Rican people of Spanish descent
Presidents of the Popular Democratic Party (Puerto Rico)
Presidents of the Senate of Puerto Rico
Secretaries of justice of Puerto Rico
Valley Forge Military Academy and College alumni
Burials at Cementerio Católico San Vicente de Paul
20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico