An indirect presidential election was held in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

on 24 February 2008, in which the

National Assembly of People's Power The National Assembly of People's Power ( es, Asamblea Nacional del Poder Popular) is the unicameral parliament of the Republic of Cuba. It is currently composed of 605 representatives who are elected from multi-member electoral districts for a ...

elected a new President of the Council of State and the members of the

Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head o ...

. The election followed the January 2008 parliamentary election. In the election,

Raúl Castro Raúl Modesto Castro Ruz (; ; born 3 June 1931) is a retired Cuban politician and general who served as the first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba, the most senior position in the one-party communist state, from 2011 to 2021, succeed ...

, who had been Acting President since July 2006, was elected as President of the Council of State, succeeding his older brother,

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 2 ...

. It was initially considered uncertain whether the ailing 81-year-old Fidel Castro would be elected for another term as President of the Council of State or acting president Raúl Castro would formally assume the presidency, but on 19 February Fidel Castro said that he would not seek another term because his physical condition would not allow him to properly carry out the duties of the office. Raúl Castro, aged 76, was elected as President of the Council of State and the

Council of Ministers A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nati ...

by a unanimous vote of the National Assembly"Results of Council of State elections"
, Granma.cu, February 29, 2008. (on a ballot with only his name for the positionJames C. McKinley Jr.
"Raul Castro becomes president of Cuba"
''International Herald Tribune'', 24 February 2008.) on 24 February 2008."Raul Castro named Cuban president"
BBC News, 24 February 2008. José Ramón Machado Ventura, at age 77, was elected as First Vice-President of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers,"Raul Castro named Cuban president"
''Al Jazeera'', 24 February 2008. contrary to speculation that someone younger would be chosen for the post. Raúl emphasized that his brother remained "Commander in Chief of the Cuban Revolution", and the National Assembly voted to permit Raúl to consult with Fidel on important issues. 600 deputies chose to cast united votes for all Council of State candidates, while nine deputies cast selective votes. Castro was elected with a unanimous vote of 609 deputies, while Machado received 601 votes.

Juan Almeida Bosque Juan Almeida Bosque (February 17, 1927 – September 11, 2009) was a Cuban politician and one of the original commanders of the insurgent forces in the Cuban Revolution. After the rebels took power in 1959, he was a prominent figure in the Co ...

Abelardo Colomé Ibarra Corps General Abelardo Colomé Ibarra (born 13 September 1939 in Santiago de Cuba, Oriente Province, Cuba) was a Vice President of the Council of State of Cuba and the Cuban Minister of the Interior, serving in the latter position from 1989, until ...

Carlos Lage Dávila Carlos Aurelio Lage Dávila (born 15 October 1951) is a Cuban politician. Until 2009, he was a Vice President of the Council of State of Cuba, a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of Cuba, and Executive Secretary of the Council of Min ...

Esteban Lazo Hernández Juan Esteban Lazo Hernández (born 26 February 1944) is a Cuban politician who has been the President of the National Assembly of People's Power The National Assembly of People's Power ( es, Asamblea Nacional del Poder Popular) is the unicame ...

, and

Julio Casas Regueiro Corps General Julio Casas Regueiro (February 18, 1936 – September 3, 2011) was a Cuban politician. He was a vice-president of the Council of State and the Minister of Defense. Previously, Regueiro was the Deputy Minister of MINFAR in charge of ...

were elected as Vice-Presidents of the Council of State, all receiving 608 votes except for Lage, who received 609. José Miyar Barruecos was elected as Secretary of the Council of State with 608 votes. 23 other members of the Council of State were elected: * José Ramón Balaguer Cabrera (608 votes) * Iris Betancourt Téllez (609 votes) *

Roberto Fernández Retamar Roberto Fernández Retamar (9 June 1930 – 20 July 2019, Havana) was a Cuban poet, essayist, literary critic and President of the Casa de las Américas. In his role as President of the organization, Fernández also served on the Council of State ...

(609 votes) *

Luis Herrera Martínez Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish form of the originally Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese and Galician, in Aragonese and Catalan, while is archa ...

(608 votes) * Orlando Lugo Fonte (608 votes) *

Felipe Pérez Roque Felipe Ramón Pérez Roque (born 28 March 1965) was the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Cuba from 1999 to 2009. At his appointment, he was not only the youngest member of the Cuban cabinet but also the only one to be born after the Cuban Revoluti ...

(609 votes) * Pedro Sáez Montejo (609 votes) *

Ramiro Valdés Menéndez Ramiro Valdés Menéndez (born 28 April 1932) is a Cuban politician. He became a Government Vice President in the 2009 shake-up by Raúl Castro. Biography A veteran of the Cuban Revolution, Valdés fought alongside Fidel Castro at the attack on ...

(608 votes) *

Francisco Soberón Valdés Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed " Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...

(608 votes) *

Carlos Valenciaga Díaz Carlos may refer to: Places ;Canada * Carlos, Alberta, a locality ;United States * Carlos, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Carlos, Maryland, a place in Allegany County * Carlos, Minnesota, a small city * Carlos, West Virginia ;Elsew ...

(609 votes) * Surina Acosta Brook (609 votes) *

Regla Dayamí Armenteros Mesa Regla () is one of the 15 municipalities or boroughs ('' municipios'' in Spanish) in the city of Havana, Cuba. It comprises the town of Regla, located at the bottom of Havana Bay in a former aborigine settlement named ''Guaicanamar'', Loma Mo ...

(609 votes) *

Leopoldo Cintra Frías Leopoldo Cintra Frías is a Cuban military and political leader. Cintra was the former Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba. Military career He participated in the Cuban Revolution in November 1957 at the age of 16. His first act ...

(609 votes) * Inés María Chapman Waugh (609 votes) *

María del Carmen Concepción González María del Carmen Concepción González (born 15 September 1957) is a Cuban politician and the Cuban Minister of Food Industries (2009–present). She was appointed as a result of the 2009 shake-up by Raúl Castro. She is a Deputy to the Nationa ...

(608 votes) *

María Yolanda Ferrer Gómez Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 * Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...

(609 votes) *

Guillermo García Frías Guillermo () is the Spanish form of the male given name William. The name is also commonly shortened to 'Guille' or, in Latin America, to nickname 'Memo'. People *Guillermo Amor (born 1967), Spanish football manager and former player *Guillermo Ar� ...

(608 votes) *

Tania León Silveira Tania is usually a given name. It may refer to: Given name * Tânia Alves, Brazilian actress and singer * Tania Brishty, Bangladesh actress and model * Princess Tania de Bourbon Parme, French designer * Tania de Jong, Dutch-born Australian sopra ...

(609 votes) *

Álvaro López Miera Corps General Álvaro López Miera is a Cuban military and political leader and has served as the Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba since 15 April 2021. Military career He was born in the City of Havana on December 26, 1943 i ...

(608 votes) * Julio Martínez Ramírez (609 votes) * Dignora Montano Perdomo (609 votes) * Juan José Rabilero Fonseca (606 votes) *

Salvador Valdés Mesa Salvador Antonio Valdés Mesa (born 13 June 1945) is a Cuban politicianDamien CaveRaúl Castro Says His Current Term as President of Cuba Will Be His Last ''The New York Times'', 24 February 2013 and former trade union leader. He is the First Vi ...

(609 votes)

References

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President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

Elections in Cuba