Tulane alumnus has been elected governor of Puerto Rico

Pedro Pierluisi (A&S ’81) won the U.S. territory’s governorship in the November 3 election. Pierluisi received a Bachelor of Arts degree in American history from Tulane in 1981. He was president of the Puerto Rico Statehood Students Association chapter while he was a Tulane student.

According to the Associated Press, Pierluisi is the president of the New Progressive Party and a San Juan lawyer with 35 years of experience as both a public servant and a private business owner. He was elected for two consecutive terms as resident commissioner for Puerto Rico in the U.S. Congress, from 2009 - 2012 and 2013 - 2016. 

On November 3, Pierluisi received nearly 33 percent of votes compared with nearly 32 percent obtained by Carlos Delgado of the Popular Democratic Party, which supports the current territorial status, according to the Associated Press.

The announcement of Pierluisi’s election came four days after Puerto Rico held general elections, an unusual delay blamed on a record number of early and absentee votes that overwhelmed officials, news reports said. 

Puerto Rico’s results were released hours after U.S. President-elect Joe Biden won the election in the U.S. mainland, a victory that Pierluisi said would help Puerto Rico finally gain statehood. He congratulated Biden and said he looked forward to working with him and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris “for the benefit of all Puerto Ricans in their fight for progress and equality.”

Read more about Pierluisi.