Nicolás Maduro describes Cuban elections as "virtuous" despite reports of voter suppression

Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro congratulated his counterpart Miguel Díaz-Canel for the parliamentary elections held in Cuba on Sunday, an event he described as a "virtuous electoral day," despite reports from civil society members that opposition voters were locked in their homes to ensure their vote was suppressed. 

"From the Bolivarian Homeland, we celebrate with joy the heroic demonstration of the People of Martí and Fidel, with a majority participation of millions of Cubans on a virtuous, electoral day," said a statement issued on Sunday.

Maduro added that the elections in Cuba ratify "the firm and vigorous support for the Revolutionary Project, an example, inspiration and guide for the Peoples of Our Latin America-Caribbean and the world."

The Cuban regime acknowledged this Monday that only 75.92% of the electoral roll voted in its controlled "elections," with an abstention of 24.08%, a figure that could be higher.

In order to try to increase attendance at the polls, the National Electoral Council (CEN) even extended voting hours until 7:00 p.m.

The president of the CEN, Alina Balseiro Gutiérrez, told the state press that the vote "developed normally, without incidents," despite dozens of reports from independent civil society about repression.

In the majority of cases, Cubans suspected of voting against the regime were restricted from leaving their homes and kept under surveillance.

Reports from civil society members to ADN also indicated so-called election monitoring included selective editing for the Internet while omitting actual obstacles to electoral observation.