Climbing the ladder of power from the bicycle of the future Cuban President

From a provincial party secretary who often cycled to work, Miguel Diaz-Canel was gradually promoted and is likely to become the new President of Cuba.

Cuban President Raul Castro (right) and First Vice President Miguel Diaz-Canel (left). Photo: Reuters.

Millions of Cuban voters on November 26 cast ballots to elect local councilors who will elect the National Assembly - the body that will choose President Raul Castro's successor in February 2018.

This will be the first time in nearly 60 years that the Cuban presidency will not belong to a Castro family member or a revolutionary veteran, marking the island nation's first generational leadership transition since the 1959 revolution led by Fidel Castro.

First Vice President Miguel Diaz-Canel is likely to be chosen to succeed 86-year-old leader Raul Castro, as his daughter Mariela Castro announced earlier this year that she "never wanted to be a candidate for the position of President".

If Mr. Diaz-Canel, 57 years old, becomes President of Cuba, this will be a break with the tradition of "revolutionary elders" in this country, because he was born after the Cuban revolution that overthrew the regime of dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959, according to the Miami Herald.

According to Reuters, Mr. Diaz-Canel's political career began on a bicycle in the city of Santa Clara, where he was born in an apartment near the central square. In the 1990s, when the Cuban economy was in trouble after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Cubans often went to work by bicycle or on foot, while political leaders often used Soviet-made Lada cars.

As a provincial party secretary, Diaz-Canel still chooses to ride a bicycle instead of a car as his means of transportation. "People are shocked when they see the secretary riding a bicycle to work. He doesn't do it for fame. He does it because he is who he is. He is very straightforward," said Jose Antonio Fulgueiras, president of the journalists' association in Villa Clara province, who has closely followed Diaz-Canel's political career.

In addition to his public image, the bicycle also helps Diaz-Canel maintain secrecy when he makes surprise inspections of state-owned enterprises. The fight against corruption in these enterprises has become his trademark. With such a bicycle, he gradually climbed the ladder of power.

After nine years at Villa Clara, Diaz-Canel moved to become secretary of the Holguin provincial party committee in 2003, and was later elected to the Politburo, the highest authority of the Cuban Communist Party.

Having demonstrated good leadership in Holguin, he was transferred to the capital Havana in 2009 to take up the position of Minister of Higher Education. In 2013, he was elected by the Cuban National Assembly as First Vice President, the second most powerful position in the country.

Diaz-Canel’s rise to power has not been unusually swift or smooth, observers say. According to a Cuba expert at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, Diaz-Canel has climbed the ladder cautiously, capitalizing on his good relationships with elite leaders while avoiding the pitfalls that could have ended the careers of many other presidential candidates.

Several other senior officials, such as Second Vice President Carlos Lage and Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque, were dismissed in 2009 for displaying excessive ambitions and being accused of colluding with foreign intelligence agents.

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Close-up photo of Mr. Diaz-Canel and his wife. Photo:

Despite his calm demeanor, Diaz-Canel has had his moments of intensity, particularly when it comes to media control and the Internet. He has often called for Cuba’s media to become more dynamic and open, and has welcomed the Internet as a tool for the people rather than a threat to the government.

According to a 2016 United Nations report, only 5.6 percent of Cuban households had access to the Internet in 2015. Concerned that allowing full access to the Internet would undermine the effectiveness of state media, Diaz-Canel has said that efforts to block the spread of the Internet are a last resort.

"Banning the Internet is an impossible and meaningless illusion," he told reporters shortly after taking office as First Vice President.

The Cuban government has since increased Wi-Fi signals in public places across the country. It is unclear how much influence Mr. Diaz-Canel had over the decision.

To compete with the influence of social media, Diaz-Canel said that Cuban state media needs to change, not cover up information, publish multi-dimensional news, and at the same time require the Cuban Communist Party to accept constructive criticism.

He is also a very passionate and strong defender of the Communist Party's leadership over Cuba. In statements sent to the domestic and foreign press, he affirmed that the ongoing election will send a message to the world. "That message is unity, confidence, that we will not bow down, not only to the super typhoon but also to external pressure and the intentions of some people who want to see a change of regime in us," the First Vice President of Cuba said.

Diaz-Canel’s message appeared to be aimed primarily at the administration of US President Donald Trump, who has tightened travel restrictions from the US to Cuba and stopped issuing visas to Cubans at the embassy in Havana. The Trump administration has also repeatedly mentioned the change in Cuba.

Mr. Diaz-Canel once told AP that he was optimistic about the attitude of Cuban youth towards the political regime established by leader Fidel Castro in 1959. "When I saw many young people gathering to show their respect for Fidel, I believe that the young generation and the Cuban people will defend the revolution in this election," he affirmed.

According to VNE