It was just announced that Bad Bunny will be headlining the 2026 Super Bowl Halftime show. This, with a lot of pop culture news, has created quite the online discussion. A lot of that discussion centers around the fact that Bad Bunny, born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, is a Puerto Rican rapper. Puerto Rico is US territory, which means it is not its own country and it is not a full US state. What’s the difference? Let’s get into it!
The Difference Between and State and a US Territory
Succinctly, the difference between a state and a territory is that a territory is land that the US owns, but its citizens do not have to pay federal income taxes and the territory does not have its own sovereignty.
This means things like, though each territory gets to elect a representative to the House of Representatives, that representative is non-voting – meaning they do not get to vote on US legislation like a representative elected by a state does. US territories do not have elected US senators.
The residents of US territories, though granted US citizenship at birth (except American Samoa), cannot vote for the US president while a resident of the territory. The residents DO vote in the primaries for the president, however.
There is also a difference between incorporated and unincorporated territories. Puerto Rico is considered an unincorporated territory, which means it does not have full US Constitutional rights and protections. An incorporated territory does have full US constitutional protections.
How Many US Territories Are There?
There are 16 official territories, with only 5 of them being inhabited. Puerto Rico, Guam, the US Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands are the five inhabited territories. Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Atoll, Palmyra Atoll, Wake Island, and Navassa Island are the five territories without permanent residents. They may have those that stay to care for the islands or to study them, but are otherwise uninhabited.
How and When Did Puerto Rico Become a US Territory?
Puerto Rico was a land colonized by Spain after Christopher Columbus arrived in 1493. It remained under Spanish ownership until 1898, when the United States invaded, and subsequently took possession of, the island after the Spanish-American war. The Treaty of Paris, which is when Spain ceded Puerto Rico to the US, also gave the US Guam and the Philippines.
The Jones Act of 1917 is what granted Puerto Ricans US citizenships.
Why Isn’t Puerto Rico Incorporated?
In the 1901 Supreme Court case, Downes v. Bidwell, it was established what an incorporated territory was and what an unincorporated territory for the United States was. The case revolved around Samuel Downes, a merchant, suing George R. Bidwell, a US customs inspector, because Downes was getting charged import fees for importing oranges from Puerto Rico. The Supreme Court then decided that newly annexed territories were not fully a part of the United States.
Since then, Puerto Rico has tried to become a full state, rather than an incorporated territory. Alaska and Hawaii were both incorporated territories before they became full states, but becoming an incorporated territory is not a required step.
Does Puerto Rico Want to Become a State?
The topic of Puerto Rico’s statehood is a controversial one. In 2020, a reported 53% of Puerto Ricans favored statehood, with only 47% rejecting it. In November of that year, only 55% voted in a non-binding referendum on the matter.
In order for Puerto Rico to become a state, a majority of the residents and Congress would have to vote in favor of statehood. In December 2022, a vote on Puerto Rico’s statehood pass the House, but died in the Senate.
Want more Puerto Rico?
Add a comment to: Understanding Puerto Rico’s US Territory History