Elections in Cuba - Electoral System

Electoral System

According to the constitution, Cuba is a socialist republic where all members or representative bodies of state power are elected and subject to recall and the masses control the activity of the state agencies, the deputies, delegates and officials. Fidel Castro, leader of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC), was in power, first as Prime Minister and then as President, from 1959 until 2008. Castro's brother Raúl Castro was officially designated Fidel's successor at a Communist Party congress in October 1997. Fidel Castro officially retired on February 19, 2008, leaving his brother as the sole candidate for president.

Elections in Cuba have two phases:

1. election of delegates to the Municipal Assembly, and
2. election of deputies to the Provincial and National Assemblies.

Candidates for municipal assemblies are nominated on an individual basis at local levels by the local population at nomination assemblies. Candidates for provincial assemblies and the National Assembly are nominated by the municipal assemblies from lists compiled by national, provincial and municipal candidacy commissions. Anyone older than 16 other than those mentally incapacitated, imprisoned, or deprived of their political rights can vote and be nominated to these posts. Municipal candidates must be at least 16 years old. No political parties (including the Communist Party of Cuba) are permitted to campaign. All elections take place by secret ballot. Suffrage is afforded to Cuban citizens resident for two years on the island who are aged over sixteen years and who have not been found guilty of a criminal offense.

The Communist Party of Cuba is the official state party, and various other political parties have been active in the country since their existence was legalised in 1992. Nevertheless, they, along with the Communist Party of Cuba, are prohibited from campaigning in elections or public political speech. The most important of these are the Christian Democratic Party of Cuba, the Cuban Democratic Socialist Current, the Democratic Social-Revolutionary Party of Cuba, the Democratic Solidarity Party, the Liberal Party of Cuba and the Social Democratic Co-ordination of Cuba. Members of all of those political groups are free to put themselves forward at open and public candidate selection ("Town Hall") meetings and, if they command a simple majority of those present, will be entered onto the ballot paper and have their election materials posted.