By then, the transformation of Spain's poor, agrarian, centralized economy into one more closely resembling the rest of Europe was well advanced. If anything, Cuba is changing more rapidly than Franco's Spain, if only because it began before the socialist world collapsed around it. The expansion of religious liberty began more than a decade ago, for example, and Cuban citizens, by and large, are free to practice their faiths without fear of persecution. Earlier tensions between church and state have largely been overcome, and negotiations for a papal visit are ongoing. Since the mid-1970s, Cubans have been able to vote in fair and democratic municipal elections.
Voting is by secret ballot, and the process of nominating candidates is remarkably open.
One does not have to be a member of the Communist Party to run for office. In fact, the party plays no role in city elections. But the municipal councils do not deal with national, let alone international, issues. Those are debated or, some would say, rubber- stamped by the National Assembly. Until 1993 its members were appointed, not elected by popular ballot.