This article lists political parties in Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico has a hybrid 'first past the post' electoral system, in which a voter can vote by party, by candidate or both. To qualify as an official political party (and thus be able to appear on the printed state electoral ballot), a party must meet the criteria set forth by the Puerto Rico Electoral Law.
These criteria categorize political parties as follows:
Principal Party - one that obtained at least 3% of the straight-ticket party votes cast in the prior general election, or 7% of the party-label votes for the governor & resident commissioner, or 5% of the gubernatorial candidate votes.
Principal Party of the Majority - one that obtained the majority of governor candidate votes cast in the prior general election.
Party by Petition - one that has submitted the minimum number of signatures required for new registration (currently 3 percent of the total of all votes cast for governor in the prior general election)
Political parties meeting the stated criteria are certified and inscribed by the State Elections Commission.
As of 2016, Puerto Rico has 4 registered electoral parties:
A number of unregistered political parties and organizations exist in Puerto Rico outside of the electoral arena. These organizations span the entire political spectrum:
Movimiento Socialista de Trabajadores (Socialist Workers Movement) - Socialist Revolutionary organization, with strong bases in the trade union and student movement. Bandera Roja - Periodical, in Spanish
Hostosian National Independence Movement (MINH) - (Umbrella organization in favor of pro independence and nationalist movements) - Movimiento Independentista Nacional Hostosiano
Pro ELA - In favor of a freely associated republic status.
Libertarian Party of Puerto Rico - Partido Libertario de Puerto Rico - Pro-Libertarianism / Formerly affiliated to the US Libertarian Party
United Statehooders - Estadistas Unidos.
Socialist Front - An umbrella of socialist organizations.
Puerto Rican Nationalist Party
Republican Party of Puerto Rico - The Republican Party of Puerto Rico (Spanish: Partido Republicano) is an affiliate of the national Republican Party in Puerto Rico.
Democratic Party of Puerto Rico - The Democratic Party of Puerto Rico (Spanish: Partido Demócrata) is an affiliate of the national Democratic Party in Puerto Rico.
