In a last ditch effort to pass the Senate, the U.S. House approved a bill Thursday that would permit Puerto Rico to hold a binding referendum on its future status as a state or independent country.

With some Republican support, the bill passed 233-191 and would give voters in the U.S. Territory three options: independence, statehood, or independence with free association.

“It is vital to me that any proposal by Congress to decolonize Puerto Rico should be informed and led Puerto Ricans,” stated Rep. Raul Guilva, D. Arizona, chairman of House Natural Resources Committee which oversees U.S. territories.

If Puerto Rico voters approve, the proposal would require Congress to recognize Puerto Rico as the 51st United States state. Voters could also choose to be independent or free from the United States. These terms would be determined after negotiations on foreign affairs, citizenship, and the use of U.S. dollars.

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Majority Leader Steny Hoguey, who has been involved in the issue all his life, stated that it was a “long and torturous journey” to get the House proposal to the floor.

“For far too many years, Puerto Rico’s people have been excluded from the full promise American democracy and self determination that our nation has always supported,” said the Maryland Democrat.

After passing the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives, the bill will now go to a divided Senate. There it faces a ticking timer before the end the year and Republican lawmakers who are long against statehood.

Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi of the New Progressive Party pro-statehood traveled to Washington to vote. He called it historic and stated that the 3.2 million U.S citizens living on the island are not equal, have no fair representation in federal government, and can’t vote in general elections.

“This has been a difficult fight. He said that there is still much to be done. “Our quest for decolonization Puerto Rico is a civil right issue.”

His party members, including Puerto Rico Resident Commissioner Jenniffer Gonzalez cheered the bill’s approval, but reaction in the U.S. territory remained muted and tinged by frustration, as it is likely to be rejected in the Senate.

Many islanders are annoyed by the proposal for a binding referendum. The island has already held seven referendums that were non-binding on its political status. However, no majority has emerged. With 53% voting for statehood and 47% voting against, the last referendum took place in November 2020. Only half of registered voters participated.

The binding referendum proposed would be the first time Puerto Rico’s current status of a U.S. communewealth has not been included as an option. This is a blow for the main opposition Popular Democratic Party which maintains the status quo.

Pablo Jose Hernandez Rivera is an attorney from Puerto Rico. He said that the House’s approval of the bill would be “inconsequential” as it was for previous bills approved in 1998 and 2010.

He said that Puerto Ricans were tired of the New Progressive Party’s spending 28 years in Washington on undemocratic status projects and sterile programs.

Rep. Gonzalez from Puerto Rico in Congress praised the bill, saying it would give the island the autonomy it deserves.

She stated that although many of us don’t agree on the future, we all recognize that Puerto Rico should make the final decision.