Puerto Ricans becoming a political force in Florida, but first they need to go out and vote
They’re seen as the sleeping giant of Florida voters. The challenge, though, is getting that giant to awaken, get out the door and to the voting booth, experts say. Puerto Ricans are the fastest growing part of Florida’s Latino voters, and they boast their largest concentration in the state in a critical swing-vote region – the I-4 corridor in Central Florida. But the fervor for voting that envelopes Puerto Ricans who are living on the island, which claims a roughly 80 percent turnout, seems to nearly evaporate once they settle on the mainland, say Puerto Rican leaders and political experts. “It’s a phenomenon we’re seeing with Puerto Ricans,” said Alfonso Aguilar, a former official with the George W. Bush administration and the executive director of the American Principles Project’s Latino Partnership. “In Puerto Rico, politics is a sport. People get excited. They have issues like Puerto Rico’s political status – whether it should get statehood or be independent. When Puerto Rica