The Potato, the winning candidate in Pinar del Río

The Potato, the winning candidate in Pinar del Río / 14ymedio, Juan
Carlos Fernandez
Posted on April 21, 2015

14ymedio, Juan Carlos Fernandez, Pinar del Rio, 20 April 2015 – On the
day that Cubans voted to elect the local representatives of the People's
Power, the State markets in Pinar del Río put potatoes on sale.

Chance, someone said, is the daughter of causality and hence the
suspicion of some who interpreted the sale of the highly valuable tuber
as an electoral strategy to get the voters to leave their homes or to
set aside possible plans to flee to the homes of friends or family who
live far away. Who would allow themselves to lose a chance to buy
potatoes for one Cuban peso a pound just to escape their commitment to
the delegate elections. Very few. A triumph of political marketing in
the best Soviet style.

The State markets are located very close to the polling stations.
"Killing two birds with one stone," as they say. Vote and from there go
to the market to buy potatoes.

A gentleman of seventy said, before placing his ballot in the ballot
box, "I'm going to finish with this delegate quickly, I don't know who
he is and I don't care," to immediately add, "I'm going to get in the
potato line, there are a lot of people and they close at noon today."
With a certain tone of electoral authority, he concluded, "The potato
won these elections, my friend."

If from the mood of the inhabitants of the city of Pinar del Río it was
clear that something had changed, it was because they were celebrating
the victory of the absolute winner of these unforgettable elections
which took place on the market stands and which had as the only
candidate a food that appears very sporadically in these markets.

Meanwhile, in the balloting there was a notable boredom among the poll
tenders, anxious for closing time to arrive. Indifference and apathy
surrounded the process to select "the most capable." "It's tedious and
nobody takes it seriously," said a commentator at the Parque del Bosque
Peña de Pelota in the city center.

On this "historic election day," the potato had no rival candidate and
carried the day with a resounding victory.

Source: The Potato, the winning candidate in Pinar del Río / 14ymedio,
Juan Carlos Fernandez | Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/the-potato-the-winning-candidate/