Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro casts his ballot at a polling station ... more >Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro emerged from his home to make the longest public appearance he’s made since 2010, chatting up islanders as he cast his own ballot in Cuba’s Sunday elections.
The ailing Mr. Castro, who retired and ceded power to his brother Raul in 2008, has voted from his home in the past three elections. Now 86 and stooped, according to an Associated Press report, he was captured by state-run television casting his ballot in Havana.
The television broadcaster said Mr. Castro spoke of the need to continue economic reforms, decentralize power and give more freedom for private ventures, according to AP.
“The people are truly revolutionary, they have really sacrificed. We don’t have to prove it, history will. Fifty years of the blockade and they haven’t given in,” Mr. Castro reportedly said of the Communist presence in Cuba.
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Cheryl Chumley is a continuous news writer for The Washington Times. Previously, she was part of the start-up team for The Washington Times’ digital aggregation product, Times247. She’s also a 2008-2009 Robert Novak journalism fellow with The Phillips Foundation. She can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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