referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...

was held on 25 September 2022 in

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

to approve amendments to the Family Code of the

Cuban Constitution Even before attaining its independence from Spain, Cuba had several constitutions either proposed or adopted by insurgents as governing documents for territory they controlled during their war against Spain. Cuba has had several constitutions sin ...

. The revised code contains stronger rules on

gender equality Gender equality, also known as sexual equality, gender egalitarianism, or equality of the sexes, is the state of equal ease of access to resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic participation and decision-making, an ...

and modernizes protections for

women A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or adolescent is referred to as a girl. Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functional u ...

children A child () is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking ...

, the

elderly Old age is the range of ages for people nearing and surpassing life expectancy. People who are of old age are also referred to as: old people, elderly, elders, senior citizens, seniors or older adults. Old age is not a definite biological sta ...

and

people with disabilities Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, ...

. Moreover, legal recognition is given to

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...

and adoption and altruistic

surrogacy Surrogacy is an arrangement whereby a woman gets pregnant and gives birth on behalf of another person or couple who will become the child's legal parents after birth. People pursue surrogacy for a variety of reasons such as infertility, danger ...

. Following the code's approval, Cuba's family policies have been described as among the most progressive in Latin America.

Background

Until 2019, Article 36 of the 1992

Constitution of Cuba Even before attaining its independence from Spain, Cuba had several constitutions either proposed or adopted by insurgents as governing documents for territory they controlled during their war against Spain. Cuba has had several constitutions sin ...

defined marriage as "the voluntary union established between a man and a woman", making same-sex marriage constitutionally impermissible. In December 2017, LGBT groups began a campaign to repeal the ban as part of the drafting process for the new constitution. On 4 May 2018,

Mariela Castro Mariela Castro Espín (born 27 July 1962) is the director of the Cuban National Center for Sex Education in Havana, as well as the National Commission for Comprehensive Attention to Transsexual People, and an activist for LGBT rights in Cuba. C ...

announced proposals for legalizing same-sex marriage as part of the constitutional consultation process. On 21 July, the

Council of State A council of state is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head ...

announced that the draft constitution would define marriage as a "union between two people". The National Assembly approved the draft on 22 July, and it was subject to

public consultation Public consultation, public comment, or simply consultation, is a process by which members of the public are asked for input on public issues. This can occur in public meetings open to all (such as town hall meetings) in written form (such as in ...

between 13 August and 15 November 2018. The issue of same-sex marriage triggered public debate and organization in Cuba. In June 2018, five Christian denominations declared same-sex marriage "contrary to the spirit of the communist revolution". In what was described as "a poster war", both opponents and supporters of same-sex marriage put up hundreds of posters around Havana. In September 2018, reacting to conservative opposition, President of the

Miguel Díaz-Canel Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez (; born 20 April 1960) is a Cuban politician and engineer. He has served as the 8th First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba, first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba since 2021 and as the 17th president o ...

announced his support for same-sex marriage. In his first interview since taking office in April, he told

Telesur Telesur (stylized as teleSUR) is a Latin American terrestrial and satellite news television network headquartered in Caracas, Venezuela, and sponsored by the governments of Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua. First proposed in 2005 and subsidized ...

that he supports "marriage between people without any restrictions", and is in favor of "eliminating any kind of discrimination in society". Pressure from religious groups and deep-rooted conservatism in Cuban society resulted in the abandonment of the original definition of "a union between two people". The final draft of the new constitution was ratified by the National Assembly and defined marriage as a "social and legal institution" and "one of the forms of family organization", leaving marriage law a matter for the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

said that same-sex marriage would be introduced separately as part of an update to the Family Code. The new constitution was approved in a referendum on 24 February 2019, with 90.6% in favor, and entered into force on 10 April of the same year. Article 82 of the new constitution states:

Preparations

Ballot paper used in 2022 Cuban Family Code referendum

On 15 September 2021, the Cuban government published a draft of the new Family Code, which would legalize same-sex marriage. Article 61 of the draft code states that marriage is "the consensual union between two people" without reference to the sex of the parties. Likewise, parents are no longer defined by their sex; Articles 30 and 31 provide for

same-sex adoption Same-sex adoption is the adoption of children or adults by same-sex couples. It may take the form of a joint adoption by the couple, or of the adoption by one partner of the other's biological child or adult ( stepchild adoption). Joint adopt ...

and explicitly grant the right of paternity to couples using

assisted reproductive technology Assisted reproductive technology (ART) includes medical procedures used primarily to address infertility. This subject involves procedures such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), and cryopreservation of ga ...

. The new code was well received by

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, Gay men, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the Capital punishmen ...

associations, although they remained cautious about the success of the changes. On 30 December 2021, a special commission was created to organize the referendum, headed by the diplomat Antonio Machín. A public consultation process began on 15 February 2022. Some LGBT groups criticized the decision to call a referendum on the subject. The government responded that it preferred to implement the legislation with express public consent to avoid the perception of imposition by force. Several other countries in Latin America legalized same-sex marriage or civil unions in the same period, leading to protests from Cuba's LGBT community regarding the slow pace of change compared to nearby jurisdictions. In addition to LGBT issues, the new Family Code also includes greater protection for children and adolescents, the joint responsibility of parents in their education, and strict equality in rights between men and women. The Code also guarantees minors the right not to be the object of exclusion, violence or parental neglect. On 6 June 2022, version 25 of the Family Code was presented, reflecting the final results of the public consultation and including modifications to 48.73% of the articles.

Opinion polls

Results

The vote commenced for Cuban nationals abroad on 18 September at around 1,000 polling stations worldwide, including at Cuban embassies and consulates, and voting commenced in Cuba itself at 07:00 CDT on 25 September. Polls closed in most of the country at 18:00, though voters in line at polling locations at that time were reportedly allowed to vote. Certain locations in

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.2022 Atlantic hurricane season. The results were set to be released on 30 September by the National Electoral Council. However, preliminary

exit poll An election exit poll is a poll of voters taken immediately after they have exited the polling stations. A similar poll conducted before actual voters have voted is called an entrance poll. Pollsters – usually private companies working fo ...

s showed that a majority of voters supported the proposals. The abstention rate of the referendum was 26%, higher than the abstention rate for the constitutional referendums of

1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...

and 2019.

By province and equivalents

Notes

References

{{Cuban elections Family Code referendum

LGBTQ rights in Cuba Referendums in Cuba Same-sex marriage referendums

Family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

LGBTQ-related legislation