| Election Name: | 2008 Cuban parliamentary election |
| Country: | Cuba |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2003 Cuban parliamentary election |
| Previous Year: | 2003 |
| Next Election: | 2013 Cuban parliamentary election |
| Next Year: | 2013 |
| Seats For Election: | All 614 seats in the National Assembly of People's Power |
| Election Date: | 20 January 2008 |
| Image1: | Fidel Castro 2009.jpg |
| Leader1: | Fidel Castro |
| Party1: | Communist Party of Cuba |
| Seats1: | 614 |
| Seat Change1: | 5 |
| President of the Council of Ministers | |
| Before Election: | Fidel Castro |
| Before Party: | Communist Party of Cuba |
| After Election: | Raúl Castro |
| After Party: | Communist Party of Cuba |
Parliamentary elections were held in Cuba on 20 January 2008 to elect members of the National Assembly of People's Power.[1] According to the Cuban electoral system, one candidate was nominated for each of the 614 seats in the Assembly, and candidates were elected if they received at least 50% of the vote. The candidates are otherwise proposed by nominating assemblies, which comprise representatives of workers, youth, women, students and farmers as well as members of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, after initial mass meetings soliciting a first list of names. The final list of candidates is drawn up by the National Candidature Commission taking into account criteria such as candidates' merit, patriotism, ethical values and revolutionary history.[2] [3]
The date of the election was announced on 20 November 2007.[1] It was considered uncertain whether the ailing Fidel Castro would run for the Assembly, which he had to do in order to continue as President; it emerged in early December that he had been nominated for a seat. Since his illness began in 2006, Raúl Castro had been acting president.[4]
María Esther Reus, the president of the National Electoral Commission and Minister of Justice, announced the results of the election on 24 January 2008. Turnout in the election was placed at 96.89%, with 8,231,365 voters participating; 95.24% of the votes cast (7,839,358) were valid. 91% of voters (7,125,752) cast a united ballot for all candidates, while 9% (713,606) chose to vote only for certain candidates. Of the invalid votes, 3.73% (306,791) were blank and 1.04% (85,216) were spoiled. The newly elected Assembly met for the first time on 24 February.[5]
Raúl Castro was re-elected from the 2nd Eastern Front with 99.37% of the vote and Fidel Castro was re-elected from the 7th District of Santiago de Cuba with 98.26% of the vote.[6] Vice-President Carlos Lage and President of the Assembly Ricardo Alarcón won their seats with 92.40% and 93.92% of the vote, respectively.[7]
On 24 February 2008, the National Assembly began sitting for its new term, and Raúl Castro was elected President Alarcón was elected as president of the National Assembly, while Jaime Crombet Hernández Vaquero was elected as its vice-president and Miriam Brito was elected as its secretary.[8]