The Cuban president and first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel, voted this Sunday in the city of Santa Clara, in the center of the country, within the framework of the general elections held on the island.
Díaz-Canel has exercised his right in the 44th constituency of Santa Clara, his hometown. Before entering the electoral college, Díaz Canel has spoken with some young people who “expressed their support and confidence in the Cuban democratic process,” according to reports by the official Cuban press.
The president stressed that the candidates have had the opportunity to “dialogue with the people about the challenges Cuba faces in the face of the economic blockade and the unfair inclusion on the list of countries that sponsor terrorism.”
In addition, he has defended that the National Assembly change its work system to facilitate exchanges with people and advance the legislative agenda. He has also expressed his confidence that “the Cuban people are defending the future, the homeland and the unity of the revolution with their conscious and optimistic vote.”
He has also already voted for the Prime Minister of Cuba, Manuel Marrero, specifically in constituency 7 of the Pastorita neighborhood, in the municipality of Gibara, Holguín province. Marrero has also spoken with the boys and girls who guard the polls during this “moving and shocking” day.
“This is a civic and democratic process where the people first elected their delegates, then their candidates for deputies and this Sunday the citizens go to the polls freely and democratically to elect their deputies to the National Assembly of People’s Power”, Marrero has emphasized.
Meanwhile, the Cuban Minister of Foreign Relations, Bruno Rodríguez, has stressed on Twitter that his vote “is for the homeland, for continuing to build a more just and democratic socialist society and for the continuity of the Revolution.”
The authorities have called for participation while the opposition has requested abstention as a political statement and with the aim that a high number feeds his speech against the legitimacy of the current Cuban political system.
