1958 Cuban general election

General elections were held in Cuba on 3 November 1958.^[1] The three major presidential candidates were Carlos Márquez Sterling of the Partido del Pueblo Libre, Ramón Grau of the Partido Auténtico and Andrés Rivero Agüero of the Coalición Progresista Nacional. There was also a minor party candidate on the ballot, Alberto Salas Amaro for Partido Union Cubana, who received 1% of the vote. Voter turnout was estimated at 50% of eligible voters.^[2] Although Andrés Rivero Agüero won the presidential election with 70% of the vote, he and all other elected officials were unable to take office due to the Cuban Revolution.^[3] Anselmo Alliegro y Milá briefly became the next president on 1 January 1959, before being replaced by the Chief Justice Carlos Manuel Piedra the following day, who in turn was replaced by Manuel Urrutia Lleó a day later.

1958 Cuban general election

← 1954 3 November 1958 1976 →

Presidential election

Nominee Andrés Rivero Agüero Carlos Márquez Sterling Ramón Grau Party Progressive Action PPL Auténtico Popular vote 428,166 95,447 75,789 Percentage 70.40% 15.69% 12.46%

President before election Fulgencio Batista Progressive Action Party Elected President Andrés Rivero Agüero (elected) Manuel Urrutia Lleó (appointed) Independent

This was the last competitive election in Cuba; the 1940 constitution was abrogated and the Congress quickly dismantled shortly thereafter.

Background

The rebels had publicly called for an election boycott, issuing its Total War Manifesto on 12 March 1958.^[4]

Results

President

Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Andrés Rivero Agüero	National Progressive Coalition	428,166	70.40
	Carlos Márquez Sterling	Partido del Pueblo Libre	95,447	15.69
	Ramón Grau	Partido Auténtico	75,789	12.46
	Alberto Salas Amaro	Partido Unión Cubana	8,752	1.44
Total			608,154	100.00
Source: Bonachea & San Martin[5]

Chamber of Representatives

The 166 members of the Chamber of Representatives were elected; 85 for a four-year term 81 for a two-year term.^[6]

Party		Seats
	Progressive Action Party	65
	Liberal Party of Cuba	25
	Democratic Party	22
	Radical Union	21
	Partido Auténtico	17
	Partido del Pueblo Libre	14
	Partido Unión Cubana	2
Total		166
Source: Diario de la Marina[6]

Aftermath

Rivero Agüero was due to be sworn in on 24 February 1959. In a conversation between him and the American ambassador Earl E. T. Smith on 15 November 1958, he called Castro a "sick man" and stated it would be impossible to reach a settlement with him. Rivero Agüero also said that he planned to restore constitutional government and would convene a Constitutional Assembly after taking office.^[7]

See also

• Cuba–United States relations
• History of Cuba
• Timeline of Cuban history
• 1940 Constitution of Cuba
• Earl E. T. Smith