By The Star Staff
Popular Democratic Party (PDP) Reps. Héctor Ferrer Santiago, Sol Higgins Cuadrado, Estrella Martínez Soto, Domingo Torres García, Jorge Alfredo Rivera Segarra, Eladio “Layito” Cardona Quiles, Ángel “Tito” Fourquet Cordero, José “Cheito” Rivera Madera and Deborah Soto Arroyo on Wednesday threw their support behind the candidacy of Jesús Manuel Ortiz González to be the PDP candidate for governor in 2024.
“Jesús Manuel is part of the new leadership of our party, which has a lot to contribute to the country,” the lawmakers said in a written statement. “He is a leader who knows the reality of all Puerto Ricans because he has lived it. A leader with the ability to listen. We have no doubt that with his discipline and hard work he will build a better Puerto Rico for everyone.”
The legislators went on to list the “various initiatives from the Legislature” authored or co-authored by Ortiz González, their colleague in the House of Representatives, including laws on a dignified retirement, minimum wage, university competencies, domestic violence, employment protection for medicinal cannabis patients, collective bargaining guarantees, labor reform and government transparency, and cybersecurity, among others, which they said “have an impact on improving the quality of life of Puerto Ricans.”
“We have no doubt that if he has done so as a legislator, as governor of Puerto Rico, he will seek opportunities to improve the quality of life of all of us who live here,” the lawmakers said.
They also emphasized that “Jesús Manuel has work experience in both the Legislative and Executive Branches, as for four years he served as Public Affairs Secretary at La Fortaleza.”
“Then, he decided to venture into partisan politics and has excelled for the past seven years, working in both legislative minorities and majorities,” they added. “He is an official who is committed, disciplined and sensitive to the country’s problems.”
The group also highlighted Ortiz González’s political work as PDP president ahead of next year’s general election.
“For the past few months, we have seen Jesús Manuel focused on putting the PDP in a position to win,” they said. “It is based on that work, on his discipline and on his leadership that we are sure that the PDP will win the next elections and that, in the near future, Puerto Ricans will have a better quality of life here in our land. In six months, he has visited 80% of the towns and promoted their reorganization processes. In addition, he has promoted all the projects and work plans for the party that he promised during his campaign for the presidency.”