Cuba's Raul Castro Expected to Step Down

HAVANA - Through the Space Age, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Internet era, Cubans held one constant: A Castro ruled the nation.

That is about to change.

Raúl Castro, 86, is expected to step aside as Cuba's president this week, ending the epochal run of two brothers who sent shock waves through 20th-century politics. Nearly two decades into this century, and less than two years after Fidel Castro's death, his brother's exit from Cuba's top job leaves this insular island at a crossroads, weighing how fast, if at all, to embrace change.

"This is an important moment for Cuba, but the truth is, nobody knows what to expect," said Camilo Condis, general manager of Artecorte, a community project in Havana. "I mean, other than Fidel and Raúl, who is there? You didn't really know anyone else."

In a session of the National Assembly opening Wednesday - and probably culminating with a succession vote on Thursday - members are expected to replace Castro with Miguel Díaz-Canel. Born after the revolution, Díaz-Canel, 57, grew up in the shadow of the olive-drab-wearing guerrilleros who remain a powerful if aging force in Cuba's decision-making apparatus. He is viewed as a consensus builder unlikely to push for quick or radical reform.

Castro has laid the groundwork for his exit for years, and the passing of the torch is highly symbolic. When Raúl took the reins from Fidel in 2008, a Castro was still in charge. This time, the succession amounts to a tricky effort to build a new generation of leaders without the Castro name, a move considered essential to cementing the central role of Cuba's communist system.

"This is about institutionalizing the regime," said Jorge Domínguez, a Cuba expert and professor of government at Harvard University....