San Juan mayor and vocal Trump critic Carmen Yulín Cruz will run for governor of Puerto Rico

San Juan, Puerto Rico Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz.
(Image credit: AFP Contributor / Getty Images)

The mayor of San Juan who outspokenly criticized the Trump administration's response to a hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico announced she will run for governor in 2020.

Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz announced her bid on Friday, telling an audience in Puerto Rico it is time to "break away from the chains that tie us down in order to have a promising future and break our cycle of poverty," reports NBC News.

Cruz rose to national prominence after Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico in 2017. When President Trump called the response to the hurricane "incredible," Cruz responded by saying "Where have you been?" and lambasting the Trump administration's slow response to supplying emergency aid. Trump has criticized Cruz for being "nasty" and reflecting "poor" leadership.

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She hasn't only criticized Trump, though — in her announcement, she also criticized current Gov. Ricardo Rosselló, who she said "was unable to count deaths after Hurricane Maria" and "stood by Trump when he threw paper towels at people."

Cruz is running as a member of the Popular Democratic Party, which opposes statehood for Puerto Rico, per NBC News.

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Marianne Dodson

Marianne is The Week’s Social Media Editor. She is a native Tennessean and recent graduate of Ohio University, where she studied journalism and political science. Marianne has previously written for The Daily Beast, The Crime Report, and The Moroccan Times.