U.S. presidential election 'controversy over trash island' Puerto Rico's majority 'wants to transfer to state'

More than half of U.S. Puerto Ricans have expressed their support for the move to the 51st U.S. state.

In Puerto Rico's referendum, which coincided with the governor's election on the 5th, Puerto Rico's election authorities said that 56.82 percent of the respondents approved of the U.S. transfer to the state, based on 91.35% of the vote.

The percentage of respondents who said they wanted "independence" at all was 30.85%.

During the last U.S. presidential campaign, former President Trump's support speaker demeaned Puerto Rico as a trash island, which was also controversial.

It is the second highest opinion of "independence" regarding Puerto Rico's status since 1967 when related voting was carried out, according to local daily El Nuebodia.

This year, 2.3 million Puerto Rican voters voted in a referendum to choose between incorporation into the U.S. state, full independence or the island's federal form of independence.

Local media said there was no binding force on the referendum result, adding that a decision by the U.S. mainland federal parliament must be made to change Puerto Rico's status.

Puerto Ricans are citizens subject to U.S. law, but they do not have the right to vote in U.S. elections.