Puerto Rico’s Republican Party chairman has threatened to withhold his support for Donald Trump unless he issues an apology for an offensive remark that a comedian made about Puerto Rico at the former president’s Madison Square Garden rally on Sunday.
Tony Hinchcliffe called Puerto Rico “a floating island of garbage” during an opening speech at the rally. The comment sparked condemnation, including from Republicans.
“I don’t know if you guys know this, but there’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now,” Hinchcliffe said in his speech. “I think it’s called Puerto Rico.”
Hinchcliffe has since defended his joke on social media. “I love Puerto Rico and vacation there,” he wrote on X, adding that he “made fun of everyone” during his set.
Danielle Alvarez, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, previously said in a statement to Newsweek that the Puerto Rico “joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.”
But Angel Cintrón, the chairman of the Republican Party of Puerto Rico, called on Trump to personally apologize for Hinchcliffe’s comment on Jugando Pelota Dura, a Puerto Rican talk show on Monday.
Puerto Ricans cannot vote in general elections despite being U.S. citizens, but Cintrón said he would not cast a symbolic vote for Trump unless he issued an apology
“If Donald Trump doesn’t apologize to Puerto Rico, I’m not going to vote for him,” Cintrón said.
Cintrón helped secure Trump’s presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention in July.
Newsweek has contacted the Trump campaign and the Puerto Rican Republican Party for comment via email.
The comment on Puerto Rico was criticized by Vice President Kamala Harris‘ campaign and Democrats, and was also called out by Republican lawmakers including those who represent Florida, the state with the largest population of Puerto Ricans.
Meanwhile, popular Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny threw his support behind Harris after Hinchcliffe’s comment on Sunday, sharing a clip Harris’ plans for the island on social media. Other famous Puerto Ricans have also shared their support for Harris since the rally.
The joke could prove consequential for Trump a week before the election, where small margins in battleground states—where Puerto Ricans are eligible to vote as residents—are expected to decide the winner of the presidency.
The fallout could be pivotal in Pennsylvania, arguably the hardest fought of the battleground states in this election, because of its almost half a million Puerto Rican residents.
“If Hinchcliffe has caused enough offense to draw voters away from Trump, it could be a joke that ends his career and Trump’s hopes of a return to the White House,” Mark Shanahan, associate professor of political engagement at the U.K.’s University of Surrey, told Newsweek.
“A week before the election, the last thing either side should be doing is offering up own goals to the opposition,” Shanahan added. “The Puerto Rico line last night did not even play well in the room, and it’s no surprise it has been seized on both by liberal commentators and by Hispanic news outlets.”
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