Puerto Rico in Distress

ABI Analysis

With only hours before Puerto Rico’s disgraced governor was set to step down on Friday, the bankrupt U.S. territory still did not know who would succeed him, Reuters reported. Over a week ago, Governor Ricardo Rosselló bowed to 12 days of mass protests sparked by offensive chat messages and said he would resign at 5 p.m. on Friday.

Puerto Rico’s political crisis risked deepening today as lawmakers and street protesters opposed Pedro Pierluisi, the island’s former representative in the U.S. Congress, tapped to replace disgraced Governor Ricardo Rosselló, Reuters reported.

Puerto Rico’s embattled governor will name the island’s former representative in the U.S. Congress, Pedro Pierluisi, as his new secretary of state and next in line to succeed him when he steps down, El Nuevo Dia newspaper reported, according to Reuters.

Few have as many reasons as Puerto Ricans to be furious at the status quo, according to a Bloomberg Businessweek commentary. The quarter of the island’s 3.2 million residents who are 21 or younger have lived most of their lives in a grinding recession that forced hundreds of thousands to migrate to the mainland. The U.S.

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The Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico was created under the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management and Economic Stability Act of 2016. The Board consists of seven members appointed by the President of the United States and one ex officio member designated by the Governor of Puerto Rico. Access information on the Board, documents, videos of meetings, calendar of events and live webcasts by clicking here.