In Puerto Rico’s case, only Congress can offer the solution of access to bankruptcy for the territory as a whole. Last week, the United States Supreme Court accepted a case that will determine whether the territory can authorize its municipalities and public utilities to seek bankruptcy restructuring. But even that case cannot accomplish what Congress can: allow the territorial government to restructure its own debt under something like Chapter 9, a process that is not available to states.

If Congress continues to fail at a bankruptcy solution, the Treasury Department can — and must — pursue a second-best process modeled after Chapter 9 itself. While Treasury would be working more with the power of persuasion (like a big bank) than the power of legal coercion (like a court), that could still be enough influence with which to broker a solution.

Treasury is capable of drawing creditors to the negotiating table. Its tools of persuasion could include the questionable legality of some of the debt, the self-interest of most creditors and the threat that Congress will eventually mandate bankruptcy. Treasury officials could take lessons from the leadership of federal, state and local officials who avoided or led bankruptcies in New York City in 1975; Harrisburg, Pa., in 2013; and the Big Three automakers in 2009.

With a population larger than that of 22 states, Puerto Rico is “too big to fail.” But it has a fundamental problem in moving Washington to action: It lacks the clout there that comes with a voting voice in presidential elections or Congress. If Puerto Rico defaults next year, it will be because Washington has shirked its responsibility for the well-being of eight million American citizens who either live on the island or have strong ties to it. Washington will also be understood to be favoring the few hedge funds that own more than one-third of Puerto Rico’s debt. Because they have the wherewithal for endless litigation, they are the only potential winners under the status quo.

The biggest losers are already the 3.5 million American citizens who live on the island. But their political handicaps in federal politics do not leave them entirely powerless to demand bold leadership from Treasury.

That is because a new voter in federal elections is born every time a Puerto Rican uses the power of her American citizenship to migrate north for work. The United States mainland is now home to 5.1 million Puerto Ricans, most of whom are of voting age. They include at least 850,000 living in Florida, a swing state.

Each of those voters on the mainland should watch closely this winter, demand leadership to help Puerto Rico, and judge our federal politicians by their actions on this crisis. On Nov. 8, 2016, they should be organized and ready to throw their weight around.