WORLD NEWS | Cubans focus on abstentions as they vote for National Assembly

HAVANA, March 26 (AP) — Cubans cast ballots Sunday in national assembly elections, with attention focused on voter turnout amid a severe economic and immigration crisis. With 470 candidates vying for 470 seats in the Legislative Council and with no opposition challengers, the outcome of the election is a foregone conclusion. Critics say voters will largely support only a set of candidates vetted by Communist Party officials.

Observers on Sunday will be watching to see whether the downward trend in voter participation continues as the Cuban government works to reverse deteriorating economic conditions.

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Cuba’s electoral participation rate is high but has been declining for a decade.

Some 31 percent of eligible voters abstained in November’s municipal elections, the National Elections Commission said, which equates to a participation rate of 69 percent, still high by international standards, but voting is not compulsory in Cuba , but a sharp decline in participation is traditionally considered a state obligation.

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The abstention rate in the 2018 national election was 14%, compared with 6% in 2013.

The Cuban government says the system is inclusive and builds unity while avoiding fragmentation of party politics or any unwanted influence from big money donors.

President Miguel Diaz-Canel voted Sunday in the province of Vila Clara, where he was born. He acknowledged economic hardship, power outages and fuel shortages during the election.

“Some may be thinking ahead about the economic situation, but most people know that despite the difficult economic situation, we are still working together,” he said. “If we become a colony of the United States again, the problems will only increase.”

Julio Antonio Martínez Estrada, a lawyer, professor and researcher at Harvard University, said he thinks participation will continue to decline, partly because of the economy.

“It’s a response to the political and socioeconomic problems of recent years,” Estrada said, adding that it reflected “distrust and great desperation” among Cubans.

The vote comes at a time when hundreds of thousands of people have immigrated, including 300,000 who have immigrated to the United States alone in recent months.

National Assembly elections are held every five years and are strictly non-partisan. But they are indirectly controlled by the real power of the state under the constitution: the ruling Communist Party.

Half of the candidates are from the municipal councils elected in local elections last November. The other half were nominated by groups representing broad sections of society – such as women’s groups and trade unions. All are scrutinized by an electoral commission linked to the party.

The National Assembly is nominally the highest governing authority in the country. It approves laws and votes for presidents and executive officers from among its members.

In fact, the Chamber of Commerce often supports initiatives and leadership supported by the Communist Party, the only political party allowed in the island nation.

The new National Assembly is expected to convene on April 19, when it will vote for executive leadership and incumbent President Miguel Diaz-Canel is expected to be re-elected.

Candidates include key Cuban leader Diaz-Canel, semi-retired former Communist Party leader Raul Castro and Economy Minister Alejandro Gil. Candidates also included musician Eduardo Sosa, LGBT community representatives Mariela Castro and Elián González, who (Elián González) was at the center of a diplomatic custody battle between Cuba and the United States as a child in 2000. (Associated Press)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)