During the submarine warfare phases of the First World War, the USA, fearing that the islands might be seized by Germany as a submarine base, approached Denmark to sell the islands to the USA. On January 17, 1917, the United States bought the Danish West Indies for $25 million and took possession of the islands on March 31. The Danish Crown may have felt pressure to accept the sale, thinking that the USA would seize the islands, if Denmark was invaded by Germany. US citizenship was later granted to the inhabitants of the islands in 1927.
The U.S. Virgin Islands are an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States. Although U.S. citizens, Virgin Islanders cannot vote in U.S. Presidential elections.
At the national level, the U.S. Virgin Islands elects a delegate to Congress. However, the elected delegate has no voting rights in Congress.
At the territorial level, fifteen senators -- seven from the district of Saint Croix, seven from the district of Saint Thomas and Saint John, and one senator at-large who must be a resident of Saint John -- are elected for two-years term to the unicameral Virgin Islands Legislature.
The U.S. Virgin Islands has elected a territorial governor every four years since 1970. Previous governors were appointed by the President of the United States.
The U.S. Virgin Islands has both a District Court and a Superior Court. Judges are appointed by the President and the Governor respectively.
Tourism is the primary economic activity. The islands normally host 2 million visitors a year, many of whom visit on cruise ships. The manufacturing sector consists of petroleum refining, textile, electronics, rum distilling, pharmaceutical, and watch assembly plants. The agricultural sector is small, with most food being imported. International business and financial services are a small but growing component of the economy. Hovensa, one of the world's largest petroleumrefineries, is located on Saint Croix.
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