Cubans take to the polls amid criticism and protest

[AlphaCentauri]

Source: CNN

Cubans hit the polls across the country Sunday, voting in municipal assembly elections that the government hopes will soften criticism about democracy -- or lack thereof -- in the communist nation.

The nationwide vote will fill 169 assembly seats and is expected to draw millions to the polls. The vote will determine municipal representation on such local issues as waste removal and electricity, as opposed to the larger political questions facing Cuba such as the near half-century-old U.S. trade embargo.

Candidates in municipalities across the country are selected by a show of hands by local monitoring groups called Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, who are also responsible for reporting suspicious neighborhood activity.

Electoral campaigning is strictly prohibited, an aspect that Cuba touts as at least one reason it considers its elections to be more democratic than in neighboring countries.

Read more: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/04/25/cuba.municipal.elections/