The last time Americans were drafted for military service was in 1973, and there are no current plans to draft anyone. U.S. military forces are all-volunteer. Puerto Rico sends a higher percentage of volunteers into the U.S. military than nearly all the states (recent state Alaska is the exception). Yet the issue of the draft still resonates in Puerto Rico. For one thing, Puerto Ricans can be drafted but can’t vote for their Commander in Chief.
Puerto Ricans can be drafted
Once common misconception about Puerto Rico’s relationship with the United States is that the U.S. gave Puerto Rico U.S. citizenship in 1917 so it could draft men from Puerto Rico. That is not true.
Puerto Rico received U.S. citizenship on March 2, 1917, under the Jones-Shafroth Act. Two months later, the U.S. government passed a military draft — but it specifically excluded Puerto Rico from service. The territorial legislature requested that Puerto Rico be included. The federal government changed the law to allow Puerto Ricans to register for the draft. The first day it was available, 104,000 men signed up. Eventually, more than 250,000 Puerto Ricans registered for the draft and about 25,000 were selected.
There is no way these acts can be understood as Uncle Sam giving U.S. citizenship to Puerto Rico in order to draft Puerto Ricans into service. However, Puerto Rican men are, like all other male U.S. citizens, required to register for the draft when they turn 18. Beginning in 2027, registration for Selective Service — that is, the draft, will be automatic for all male U.S. citizens.
Social media claims that President Trump wants to reinstate the draft have been circulating, and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in answer to an interview question in March 2026 that a draft is not part of the “current plan,” but the president is “keeping his options on the table.” However, just like Puerto Rico statehood, resuming the draft would be up to Congress, not the president.
Residents of Puerto Rico can’t vote for the Commander in Chief
The President of the United States is also the Commander in Chief of the U.S. armed forces. U.S. citizens living in Puerto Rico — no matter where they were born — cannot vote in presidential elections.
It doesn’t make sense that Puerto Rican soldiers can be drafted but can’t vote for their Commander in Chief. But Puerto Ricans also can’t vote for senators, because Puerto Rico doesn’t have any senators. And we can’t vote through our representatives for any laws in Congress, including laws about Puerto Rico. This is because Puerto Rico has no voting members in Congress.
In short, even though Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens, they are not full represented in American democracy. This is counter to the foundational principles of the United States.
What’s the solution?
Why can’t Puerto Rico participate fully in the government of our own country? Because Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory not a state. Puerto Rico has been an important part of the United States for more than a century, but still is a territory, not a permanent part of the nation. Yet Puerto Rico’s voters have chosen statehood four times — that’s every status vote this century — and have officially requested statehood.
Puerto Rico should be admitted as a state. Congress is not acting on the democratically expressed will of the people of Puerto Rico. Reach out to your representatives and let them know that you want to see Puerto Rico become a state.
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