2018 Cuban parliamentary election explained

Country:Cuba
Type:parliamentary
Previous Election:2013 Cuban parliamentary election
Previous Year:2013
Next Election:2023 Cuban parliamentary election
Next Year:2023
Seats For Election:All 605 seats in the National Assembly of People's Power
Election Date:11 March 2018
Image1:Raul-castro-2015 (cropped).jpg
Leader1:Raúl Castro
Party1:Communist Party of Cuba
President of the Council of Ministers
Before Election:Raúl Castro
Before Party:Communist Party of Cuba
After Election:Miguel Díaz-Canel
After Party:Communist Party of Cuba

Parliamentary elections were held in Cuba on 11 March 2018 to elect members of the National Assembly of People's Power. Prior to the elections, President Raúl Castro declared he would not be seeking a new term, and a new President of the Council of State will be elected by the National Assembly.[1] His deputy, Miguel Díaz-Canel, was subsequently elected as the new president. However, Castro remained the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba, the most senior position in the country.[2]

Electoral system

All Cuban citizens who are over the age of 18 years, and possess full political rights for at least five years prior to the election are eligible to partake within the election.[3] 50% of candidates must be nominated by people from the municipality and elected by direct vote in local assemblies, where people decide who they consider to have the qualities to best represent them.[4] The other 50% of candidates are proposed by candidacy commissions which comprise representatives of workers, youth, women, students, and farmers, as well as members of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution. The final list of candidates, which corresponds to the number of seats to be filled, is drawn up by the National Candidacy Commission taking into account criteria such as candidates' merit, patriotism, ethical values, and revolutionary history.

Voter requirements are set within article 132 of the Cuban constitution. All voters must be Cuban citizens who have reached the age of 16 years, who have not been declared mentally disabled by a court, and who have not committed a crime.[5] The electoral system is designed to give the winner of the election a majority. To be declared elected, one candidate must obtain more than 50% of the valid votes cast in the constituency in which they are running. If this is not attained, the seat in question remains vacant unless the Council of State decides to hold a second round of voting.

Results

On 12 March, the Cuba National Election Commission (CNE) released preliminary results.[6] In a press conference, the CNE reported that all 605 candidates had been elected as Deputies to the National Assembly. Selective votes refer to voters who voted for either their National Assembly Deputy, or their Provincial Representative, but not both.

By province

ProvinceRegistered
voters
Votes castValid votesBlankInvalidFull listSelective votes
Votes%Votes%Votes%Votes%Votes%Votes%
Pinar del Río452,557406,11989.74379,92093.5523,0065.663,1930.79305,46280.4074,45819.60
Artemisa393,143350,06389.04324,55992.7118,9075.406,5971.88255,54378.7469,01621.26
La Habana1,685,6511,339,33579.461,249,38193.2859,7864.4630,1682.25927,03174.20322,35025.80
Mayabeque296,126268,50590.67250,36293.2412,7754.765,3682.00204,51181.6945,85118.31
Matanzas561,179475,33184.70451,22294.9317,9203.776,1891.30346,46176.78104,76123.22
Villa Clara611,358534,31087.40501,25193.8125,8394.847,2201.35411,10382.0290,14817.98
Cienfuegos311,355267,99986.08248,23592.6315,1995.674,5651.70190,96576.9357,27023.07
Sancti Spíritus366,885327,04789.14310,41194.9113,4184.103,2180.98257,33782.9053,07417.10
Ciego de Ávila337,785287,98885.26272,96894.7812,1304.212,8901.00218,87380.1854,09519.82
Camagüey591,944504,25885.19481,60095.5117,9893.574,6690.93375,61877.99105,98222.01
Las Tunas404,948353,65487.33337,53695.4413,4303.802,6880.76283,17483.8954,36216.11
Holguín785,047668,63685.17625,98393.6236,0995.406,5540.98529,37984.5796,60415.43
Granma629,155555,39988.28529,38195.3221,6803.904,3380.78461,48787.1767,89412.83
Santiago de Cuba781,000683,46287.51660,47396.6419,9662.923,0230.44554,64283.98105,83116.02
Guantánamo368,864321,15587.07309,83496.479,5592.981,7620.55256,74882.8753,08617.13
Isla de la Juventud62,99256,63089.9053,92595.222,2533.984520.8042,37978.5911,54621.41
Total8,639,9897,399,89185.656,987,04194.42319,9564.3292,8941.265,620,71380.441,366,32819.56
Source: Granma

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Castro to stand down in 2018. 2016-09-06.
  2. Web site: Raul Castro to lead Cuba's Communist Party until 2021. FRANCE 24. 19 April 2018. "I confirm to this assembly that Raul Castro, as first secretary of the Communist Party, will lead the decisions about the future of the country," Diaz-Canel said.. 28 December 2018. 18 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180718003647/https://amp.france24.com/en/20180419. dead.
  3. Web site: IPU PARLINE database: CUBA (Asamblea nacional del Poder popular), Electoral system. Inter-Parliamentary Union. 2018-04-13.
  4. Book: August, Arnold. Cuba and its neighbours: Democracy in motion. Fernwood Publishing. 2013. Canada.
  5. Web site: Cuban Constitution.
  6. Web site: Redacción Digital . National Electoral Commission releases preliminary data › Cuba › Granma - Official voice of the PCC . En.granma.cu . 2018-03-12 . 2018-04-20.