Ricardo Antonio Rosselló Nevares is a former governor of Puerto Rico who served from 2017 until his resignation in 2019 after overwhelming protests related to the Telegramgate scandal. He is the son of former governor of Puerto Rico and pediatric surgeon Pedro Rosselló.
Ricardo Rosselló
Rosselló (center) speaks in Utuado, Puerto Rico in March 2018
Rosselló with President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump following Hurricane Maria in 2017
Public protests in front of La Fortaleza following the incident
Telegramgate, also known as Chatgate or RickyLeaks, was a political scandal involving Ricardo Rosselló, then Governor of Puerto Rico, which began on July 8, 2019, with the leak of hundreds of pages of a group chat on the messaging application Telegram between Rosselló and members of his cabinet. The messages were considered vulgar, misogynistic, racist, and homophobic toward several individuals and groups, and discussed how they would use the media to target potential political opponents. The leak came in the midst of allegations by former Secretary of Treasury of Puerto Rico, Raúl Maldonado Gautier, that his department boasted an "institutional mafia" that Rosselló was involved in. The leaks also came a year after a previous scandal, dubbed WhatsApp Gate, involving other members of Rosselló's cabinet.
Protesters celebrating the resignation of Ricardo Rosselló in San Juan, the day after the announcement. Residente, Bad Bunny and Ricky Martin (center, L–R) were among many public figures that demanded Rosselló's resignation.
Ricardo Rosselló in April 2019