Cuba's foreign minister, Felipe Perez Roque, 42, belongs to this generation. He was the first Cuban born after the revolution to be named to Fidel's cabinet, and for the past 19 months, he has served under Raul in the interim government created when Fidel turned over power temporarily because of illness.Because Raul is 76 and rumored to be in poor health himself, many Cuba experts view his expected tenure as transitional. Perez Roque and Vice President Carlos Lage, who was 7 when Fidel Castro's rebels declared victory, are the top contenders outside the Castro family to become Cuba's future leader. Both are expected to retain leadership posts when the National Assembly picks the next head of state Sunday.
Older Cuban leaders once considered possible successors to the Castros -- such as National Assembly President Ricardo Alarcon, 70, and former interior minister Ramiro Valdes, 75 -- are now given almost no chance of ascending to the top post.
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