You're not alone, Nebraska!

Cross posted at Political Arguments.

The people of Puerto Rico have spoken, and they're not going to take it anymore. Well, they're still going to take it, but differently. Simply. Unicamerally.

In a referendum held yesterday the Puerto Rican electorate rejected half a century of bicameralism and opted for a unicameral legislature. They join Nebraska as the only US jurisdiction with a unicameral legislative body.

The bicameral legislature was not, as many believe, an American import. In a debate reported last Thursday, Juan Dalmau—the Independence Party electoral commisioner—explained that the upper house was originally introduced by the Spanish as a way of keeping a hold on colonial legislation as the lower house fell into creole control. At the turn of the century, the US copied the system and set up a two-tiered legislative structure: an Executive Council appointed by the governor (himself appointed by the US President) and a popularly elected house of delegates. In 1917, the Jones Act allowed the popular election of all legislators, a system that remained in place until yesterday (at least).

One of the most interesting aspect of the referendum may have been the effectiveness of those who campaigned for abstention. The Puerto Rican people like to vote. Over three fourths of registered voters regularly turn up in every election, and voting isn't even mandatory. But this time, only 22.3% of the electorate voted to show up. With such low numbers, the legislative leadership is already equivocating about how binding the referendum will be. But why did the people si this one out? Was it that the issue was relatively obscure? Or that people have stopped caring even about giving the shaft to the politicos they hate?