Puerto Rico Role Certain to Draw Dems' Scrutiny

Puerto Rico will vote on the late date of June 1, and the commonwealth might find itself with outsized influence on the Democratic race. Leading Puerto Ricans often deliver for their candidates by wide delegate margins; the territory’s governor has endorsed Barack Obama, but New York’s massive Puerto Rican population could translate into a boost for Hillary Clinton, Real Clear Politics reports.

The Democratic and Republican parties aren't heavyweight political entities in Puerto Rico (its main parties split on the issue of statehood), making for an electorate that might, or might not, express some of the Hispanic-black tensions that have hurt Obama elsewhere. The territory, which doesn’t get to vote in the general election, just switched its 63-delegate contest from a caucus to a primary in anticipation of massive turnout. (More Hillary Clinton stories.)