Jenniffer González Colón, a supporter of statehood for Puerto Rico, was elected the subsequent governor of the island.
Three of the five biggest bond referendums within the Southeast region passed on Tuesday, with voters agreeing to requests from Nashville, Tennessee; Charlotte, North Carolina; and Fairfax County, Virginia, and rejecting them in Cary, North Carolina, and Lancaster County, South Carolina.
The Southeast’s biggest bond proposal, Nashville’s $2 billion revenue bond that may help finance Select How You Move transportation project, had a virtually two-to-one approval.
The town will use the funds to enhance safety, offer public transportation 24 hours a day, one year a yr for the primary time in the town’s history, upgrade two-thirds of the town’s intersections to smart signals and complete a walk and bike network.
“Across the town now for the subsequent generation we are going to all benefit from the things the town deserves: sidewalks, signals, service, and safety,” Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell said after the vote.
Cary voters rejected a $560 million parks and recreation bond by a 54.9% to 45.1% margin and a $30 million housing bond by a 51.3% to 48.7% margin.
“We’ve got no plans to place these ballot questions back out to our residents,” said Cary Chief Strategy Officer Susan Moran said, speaking for the town. “Our residents spoke about their interest in paying for these projects and initiatives. … We’ve got heard them.”
Nearly 60% of Lancaster County voters voted against a $588 million general obligation bond measure that will have financed construction of a highschool, three elementary schools and complete renovations to highschool and athletic facilities.
“The proposed bond was 3 times the quantity of the last bond and one among the best ever proposed within the state,” Lancaster County School District Communications Director Elizabeth Bryant said. “Community members expressed … that they were concerned in regards to the tax implications, accountability measures from the last bond, and growth projections.”
The district plans to review enrollment, funding and facility capabilities before deciding its next step, she said.
“The district and the board will explore all options including adding mobile classrooms on campuses which can be at or above capability, redrawing attendance zones, raising millage in the quantity that doesn’t require a public referendum, and future bond proposals,” Bryant said.
Charlotte voters approved three bond measures: 66.9% approved $283.3 million of transportation bonds, 63.6% approved $100 million housing bonds and 71% approved $61.7 million of neighborhood improvement bonds.
Charlotte City Council District 4 Member Reneé Johnson said, “This vote reflects a shared vision for a greater, more inclusive future for Charlotte — one where reasonably priced housing is nearby for all our residents and our transportation infrastructure can meet the needs of a growing, dynamic city.”
Finally, 66.2% of Fairfax County voters approved $180 million of transportation bonds and 69.6% approved $126 million in public safety project bonds.
Individually, North Carolina and Puerto Rico elected governors: North Carolina elected Democrat Josh Stein, who replaces term-limited Democrat Roy Cooper.
Puerto Rico elected Latest Progressive Party member Jenniffer González Colón to exchange fellow NPP member Pedro Pierluisi. González Colón defeated Pierluisi in a primary earlier this yr.
It stays to be seen if the switch in leadership will change Puerto Rico policy. The federally appointed Puerto Rico Oversight Board still has an awesome deal of control over government activity.
When she takes office, the Latest Progressive Party will control Puerto Rico’s executive branch and Senate and House of Representatives, “which should facilitate implementation of the governor’s policies, a bonus over outgoing Gov. Pierluisi, who had a legislature controlled by his opponents,” said Phillip Escoriaza, senior counsel at Feldesman Leifer. “As a long-standing member of the Republican Party, the Governor-elect shall be closely scrutinized over her ability to influence incoming-Trump administration policy towards Puerto Rico, including Puerto Rico Oversight Management and Economic Stability Act, social assistance programs, and reconstruction funding, particularly power-grid woes.”
González Colón has spent almost eight years as resident commissioner for Puerto Rico within the U.S. House of Representatives, advocating for Puerto Rico.