A Cuban President Not Named Castro Will Inherit a Troubled Economy
- Communist party starts process to elect next president
- VP Diaz-Canel in line to replace Raul Castro on April 19
Cuba To Have Non-Castro President
This article is for subscribers only.
The Castro family is finally relinquishing the presidency in Cuba. Six decades of rule by first Fidel and then Raul is coming to an end as the Communist government turns to a younger generation to lead the island through its most serious economic challenge since the aftermath of the fall of the Soviet Union.
The nation of 11 million Sunday is voting in one-party elections for pre-selected ruling party candidates to fill the 600-plus National Assembly seats. In turn, assembly members will choose a replacement for President Raul Castro, 86, who is retiring April 19. All signs point to the assembly picking Miguel Diaz-Canel, a 57-year-old engineer and current first vice president.