The United ‘States’: The Uneven Democracy of the Land of Liberty

In the 2020 presidential election, around 81 million US citizens voted for Joe Biden. Around 74 million voted for Donald Trump. Around 80 million chose not to vote.  

Roughly 3.5 million citizens were denied a vote due to their location.  

In addition to the 50 US states, plus the federal district of Washington D.C., the United States also rules over five permanently populated territories – Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa. With the exception of American Samoa, people born in these territories are automatically granted US citizenship (American Samoans are only granted citizenship if at least one parent is also a US citizen – otherwise they are a US national). 

Just like citizens of the 50 states and DC, citizens of US territories have their own governor and legislatures, must obey federal law, and must pay federal taxes. However, unlike citizens of the 50 states and DC, citizens of territories do not have a vote in presidential elections. Additionally, territories, along with Washington DC, have no representation in the Senate, and only non-voting representation in the House of Representatives.  

This seems like a serious lapse in the strength of US democracy, to have around 3.5 million citizens barred from voting for their president, and over 4 million (including residents of DC), unrepresented in federal congress. Yet the US has historically touted itself as a beacon of democracy and has entered into many conflicts in the name of democracy and liberty. How does the US reconcile these seemingly conflicting circumstances?  

The circumstances of Washington DC are rooted deeply in the division of the founding fathers. The first capital of the United States was New York City. However, in a compromise between the mainly southern Democratic Republicans, and the mostly northern Federalists, the capital was moved to a city on the Potomac River, on the border of Maryland and Virginia. This city, Washington DC, was made federal territory in order to appease both sides of the political spectrum during the founding of the US. As part of this compromise, Washington DC received electoral college votes, so it could participate in presidential elections, but no senators or representatives for Congress.  

While this arrangement made some sense when it was established, in the late 1700s, it seems out of place in the modern democratic country that the US claims to be. Citizens of Washington DC do not have any senators, and only non-voting representation in the House of Representatives, meaning that they do not have a say in the passing of federal legislation. Furthermore, the lack of representation in the Senate means that citizens of Washington DC has no say in the confirmation of presidential appointments, such as Supreme Court Justices and cabinet members.  

There has been a drive in recent years to make Washington DC a state, and therefore give it equal representation in Congress. The Washington DC Admission Act passed the House of Representatives in April 2021. However, support for DC’s statehood largely falls along party lines, with Republicans opposing the motion, as the overwhelmingly Democratic city would mean that Democrats would have two extra, almost guaranteed seats in the Senate. Due to the current layout of the Senate, with a 50/50 party split, and with Democrat Joe Manchin opposing the bill, it seems unlikely that DC will be made a state in the current Congress. However, with midterm elections coming up in November 2022, if the Democrats gain a more significant majority in the Senate, and manage to hold on to the House, prospects for statehood for DC would seem more likely.  

The prospects for democracy in US territories seem dimmer. The process for making invaded territories a state is not new, as the expansion of the contiguous states was gained through conflict in many circumstances, and more recently in 1959, the annexed Kingdom of Hawaii became the 50th state. However, in the case of the five current unincorporated territories, there has not been movement in congress to make them states. Furthermore, a Supreme Court case in 1901, Downes v Bidwell, established that unincorporated territories were not subject to the same rules as states, essentially locking citizens of these territories out of the democratic process.  

Puerto Rico is a significant case study. With a population of around 3.2 million, it has enough people to form an average US state, and in fact is more populated than 20 current states. Furthermore, there is a statehood movement within Puerto Rico, which seeks to gain statehood for the island, and the consequent electoral privileges. There have been a number of referendums held on the subject, and the most recent, held in November 2020, showed a 52% support for statehood. However, these referendums are not legally binding, and serve only to gauge the mood of the population. The power to make Puerto Rico a state lies solely with Congress, though current president Joe Biden is a supporter of Puerto Rican statehood.  

However, it is worth noting that statehood is not the only solution to these territories being under-represented. It would be possible to provide electoral college votes and proper representation in congress without undergoing the statehood process – in effect, they would retain their status as unincorporated territories, but still have equal democratic representation to the rest of the US. Furthermore, there is a smaller, yet still prominent movement that supports independence for these territories. It seems illogical for the US to oppose colonialism across the world, and to champion independence for historical colonies, as it did after WWII, influencing the collapse of the British empire, and yet still own what could be considered colonies. Independence for unincorporated territories could mean freedom from US influence, and an opportunity to govern themselves in the modern world.  

Regardless of which methods of seeking representation are championed, the fact remains that the US sees itself as a global champion of democracy, independence and anti-imperialism, yet has a flawed democratic system that denies votes to US citizens who reside in territories that greatly resemble colonies. The upcoming midterm elections could have a significant influence on changing this. If the Democrats do well, it is likely that Washington DC could become a state, which could set the ball rolling for other territories. If the Republicans gain seats, then DC and the five territories can wave goodbye to statehood and equal democratic rights.