The recent election of Miguel Mario Díaz-Canel Bermúdez as president of Cuba marks the official end of the Castro-Chavismo era in the Americas

Both Nicolás Maduro and Miguel Díaz-Canel have come to the Latin American scene as announced successors of the former leaders of Venezuela and Cuba. However, while Maduro was appointed by Hugo Chávez as his successor during his last months of life and elected in popular votes in 2013, Díaz-Canel was elected by the National Assembly of People's Power in April 2018, and leads under the shadow of the old leader Raúl Castro.

Leer en español: ¿Qué será del Castrochavismo sin los Castro y sin Chávez?

The difference between the two is that, although they have come to power surrounded by the political gear of their party, Diaz-Canel must govern with his predecessor, who has not left the national political scene. Díaz-Canel represents an air of youth in a country where the political landscape is led by the Historical Generation that already exceeds eighty years, but his government will be conditioned to the national figures who continue to dictate the measures of the party. In fact, it is already known that Raúl Castro will continue in political life as first party secretary and parliamentarian.

Maduro, on the other hand, has had to govern accompanied by the great figures behind Chávez, but has not been forced to share a political scenario with the former president. This, added to his election under suffrage, has allowed him to profile himself as an 'independent' political figure within the global panorama. The political and economic measures that have led Venezuela to its current crisis are now associated to Nicolás Maduro as president, and not only to the social and economic policies of Hugo Chávez. Nicolás Maduro has prolonged the political ideals of Hugo Chávez without taking IGNORE INTO account the new economic conditions of a nation that is no longer in the oil boom of a few years ago.

The humble and reactionary origin of both leaders seems to be another point in common. Coming from Placetas, and 57 years old, Miguel Díaz-Canel has made political career in the Cuban Communist Party (PCC) and occupied, until last week, the third most important position within the PCC. This has been possible after a race within the left movements of the island. For his part, Nicolás Maduro, born in Caracas and 55, made a political career in Chavismo since 1993, when he had his first meeting with the former president who was in jail at the time. Maduro took part of the leftist movement since he was a teenager.

Diaz-Canel is known within Cuban politics but is a new character on the international scene. On the contrary, Nicolás Maduro, was already a recognized figure in the international scene for his work as Chancellor of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela since 2006. Although many people associate the figure of Maduro with his years of work as a bus driver and unionist. It is important to remember that, as a member of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he represented Venezuela in regional organizations such as Unasur, Alba, and Mercosur. The new generation of leaders that come to power in Cuba and Venezuela does not seem to offer a panorama of change in nations with a strong leftist cut.

Latin American Post | Laura Delgado

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