ST. THOMAS — Virgin Islanders could determine the political status to govern the territory in three years as the League of Women Voters of the Virgin Islands lobbies for a referendum in 2027 that would likely include three options — independence, statehood, and free association.
Another option would be to continue as an unincorporated territory, meaning the Virgin Islands belongs to the United States but is not considered part of the United States.
The Legislature of the Virgin Islands would ultimately have to approve legislation for the referendum to happen in 2027, the centennial anniversary of when United States citizenship was granted to Virgin Islanders in 1927.
“We need to do a self-determination vote on that anniversary,” Gwen-Marie Moolenaar, League of Women Voters of the Virgin Islands president, said, clarifying that the push must come from the Legislature to the Elections System of the Virgin Islands.
Moolenaar said the League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that has engaged the community in the political process for more than 40 years, has received support from the community as it lobbies for a referendum on political status in 2027.
“We gotta make the case to senators,” she said. “We’re gonna push for senators to move on that idea, and whichever senator jumps on it, we’d be very happy for that.”
The anticipated 2027 referendum would be the first time in more than three decades for voters in the territory to have an opportunity for self-determination considering the last ballot measure on the topic was back in 1993.
Despite the previous effort to vote on political status, the Virgin Islands remains an unincorporated territory whose residents are considered second-class citizens since they have limited constitutional rights.
There are, however, benefits to being an unincorporated territory like access to generous federal funding and programs that must be weighed against the downsides of limited economic control and the inability to vote for the U.S. president. There are also benefits and drawbacks to the three other political status options.
The League of Women Voters of the Virgin Islands recently discussed the socioeconomic impacts of each political status option. The conversation took place during a public forum as part of the organization’s hybrid annual meeting held virtually via Zoom and in person Saturday in the Innovative Center Conference Room at the University of the Virgin Islands on St. Thomas.
WATCH ZOOM MEETING: “League of Women Voters of the Virgin Islands annual meeting public forum via Zoom, April 20.”
Moolenaar, who co-facilitated the forum, said the intention is to have the referendum on political status in 2027.
“The League of Women Voters has decided that between now and 2027, we’re going to sponsor a series of discussions on different aspects of the topic moving forward so that when we come to 2027, people will feel, hopefully, that they have been advised to the point that they’re ready to make an important decision,” she said during the forum.
Gerard Emanuel, a retired educator who co-facilitated the forum, said maintaining status as an unincorporated territory does not have as many pitfalls as the other options. He said, however, it is natural to progress.
“I can’t say what option we should choose, but I think we should move forward and that would come to us at some point in time,” Emanuel, who participated virtually, said.
Mark Wenner, an economist who teaches at UVI on St. Thomas, served as one of four panelists during the discussion. He agreed that it is time for Virgin Islanders to determine their own political status.
“I think that the current status that we’re living in, this unincorporated status, is unacceptable,” he said. “It is a total lack of self-respect, and it’s not gonna lead us anywhere.”
Wenner, who called for political maturity in the Virgin Islands, suggested a need for better quality political leadership and improvements in governance.
Moolenaar said all the political status options have their pros and cons. She, too, called for stronger political leadership.
“My position is that almost any one of them could work,” she said. “The defining factor is leadership.”
The four panelists discussed the differences between the political status options during the forum. In addition to Wenner, the three other panelists were Malik Sekou, UVI professor of political science and history; attorney Tanisha Bailey-Roka; and Hadiya Sewer, director of the Virgin Islands Caribbean Cultural Center at UVI.
If Virgin Islanders were to select the political status of independence for the Virgin Islands to become an independent sovereign nation, Sekou said it would mean that the Virgin Islands would be able to make decisions for its own self-interest and have its own authority over all issues.
Discussing the option of statehood to become a new state of the United States with full constitutional rights, political representation, and equal access to federal programs, Sekou said it is like a marriage. He said it includes a federal level of power and administration with 50 equal entities on a subnational level. He said each state has two senators. Based on population, he said each state also has representation in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“If we ever became a state, we’d be one of the smallest of states ever,” he said.
Emanuel, while defining free association, said it is a free association between two political entities.
“Usually, one is more powerful and independent, and the other one is a colony or some type of territory that is trying to advance itself, but the essential feature of a free association is some type of a mutual agreement between the two parties,” he said. “The weaker or smaller territory has full internal self-government, but it may agree to give defense and/or foreign affairs authority to the larger, more powerful country.”
Wenner, who added to the definition of free association, said it is a relationship between two sovereign states.
“One tends to be small, and one tends to be powerful, and they previously had some kind of colonial relationship,” he said, adding that the United States has three Freely Associated States in the Pacific Ocean — the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau.
The benefits of maintaining the status quo as an unincorporated territory include generous federal funding to operate annually, disaster relief funding, national defense, and U.S. citizenship for residents, Wenner said. He said the disadvantages include lack of political control, marginal economic decision-making power, and higher income inequality in addition to being economically constrained, noting expensive labor that deters foreign investment as well as environmental regulations that must be followed.
The benefits of independence include more autonomy in setting fiscal, monetary, and trade policies as well as the ability to attract Chinese investments, Wenner said. He said disadvantages include becoming economically unviable, the loss of American investment and existing businesses, and new financial responsibilities that would include establishing a central bank, overseas embassies, a military, immigration and border control, and a coast guard.
The benefits of statehood include access to more federal funds, increased Social Security and health program benefits, the right for local government agencies to declare bankruptcy, and full political equality, Wenner said. He said the disadvantages include higher levels of federal transfers and forbearance on grant-matching requirements, the need to restructure tax-incentive programs that would become less generous, and an increased tax burden inclusive of federal and state taxes in addition to sales tax.
The benefits of free association include guaranteed economic assistance, continued technical assistance, nonimmigrant right to travel and live in the United States, and security assistance and defense, Wenner said. He said disadvantages include less U.S. economic assistance than as an unincorporated territory, the disintegration of tax-abatement programs that attracted American businesses, and the potential for more Virgin Islanders to leave their homeland, thereby stifling labor productivity and economic growth.
In conclusion, Wenner said the Virgin Islands can’t financially afford any of the political status options.
“We need to prioritize improving governance immediately,” he said. “We need to prioritize improving financial stabilization, economic diversification, and obtain better economic performance.”
Wenner said his sense is that most Virgin Islanders do not support independence because they want to maintain a relationship with the U.S. government, noting they like American citizenship as well as being able to travel to the U.S. mainland to get ahead.
“If that’s the case, we need to develop some kind of consciousness as to what we want to do and work towards that,” he said. “And so, we need to have a political movement for a change of status because this current status is not good, is unacceptable, is totally lacking in self-respect.”
Winston Smith, a retiree who attended the forum, said the territory’s political status is important.
“I feel that information that we got here today helps you at least go a little bit further with making a decision on it,” he said, adding that he hopes the community can take the information and come to the same conclusion.
The League of Women Voters of the Virgin Islands is encouraging residents to submit comments and questions on the political status options via email to lwvusvi@gmail.com. The questions will be posted to the LWV-VI website, www.lwvvi.org, where the panelists will respond with answers.
