Essentially self-governing in internal matters under the Constitution of Puerto Rico although Federal law governs many areas such as currency, post office, customs, immigration and military. A Governor, bicameral legislature and local city governments are elected in democratic elections every four years. Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens with all rights and obligations but while residents of the island have no vote in federal elections and pay no federal taxes on island-generated income. Industry is the mainstay of the economy especially pharmaceuticals, electronics, clothing and textiles. Trade, finance, insurance and tourism contribute greatly to the island's economy.
Trade is mainly with the U.S. but is diversifying to other markets.
Their annual income is now the highest in Latin America and their average life expectancy has risen to 73 years. With the island's economy evolving from agriculture to manufacturing and tourism, a demand for educated forces has resulted in the average worker having at least 12 years of schooling. Despite this relative prosperity emanating from industrialization, personal income still lags behind that in the poorest U.S. state. Language Spanish is the official language although English is widely spoken especially in hotels,restaurants, shops and nightclubs that attract tourists and many Puerto Ricans are bilingual. The linguistic marriage of English and Spanish after English was introduced in 1898 led to what many scholars call Spanglish, a colloquial dialect blending both languages into forms not considered classically correct in either linguistic tradition.