Former US President-Endorsed Contender Asfura Proclaimed New Head of State of the Central American Nation
Donald Trump-backed candidate Nasry “Tito” Asfura was proclaimed the victor of Honduras’s race for the presidency following a ballot tally that extended for almost a month and was clouded by fraud allegations and criticism of interference by the American leader.
The rightwing Asfura, 67, a construction magnate and former mayor of the capital city, Tegucigalpa, obtained 40.27% of the vote, compared to 39.53% for the centre-right Salvador Nasralla, a margin of just 28,000 votes.
The election authority declared a victor prior to finishing the review of all tally sheets under a “special scrutiny” initiated last week to re-tally votes flagged as “inconsistent”. The move was criticised by defeated candidates and deplored by the Organization of American States, which deployed an observation mission to the election held on 30 November.
Asfura has already declared himself the elected president. “Honduras, we now have the official declaration from the CNE [supreme electoral tribunal]. I recognise the tremendous effort undertaken by the councillors and the whole staff that ran the election. My fellow citizens: I am ready to govern. I will not fail you. God bless Honduras,” he wrote.
Nasralla declined to accept defeat and posted a number of messages alleging fraud in the counting process, including “tampering with official records”, claiming that “the figures from the initial count sheets were changed”.
The electoral council is made up of three councillors: one affiliated with Asfura’s party, one with Nasralla’s, and one with the party of the leftist president, Xiomara Castro, whose nominee finished third. Asfura’s win was announced only by the initial pair of councillors.
The member associated with the president’s party rejected the outcome, alleged that an “electoral coup” was under way and lodged a complaint with the public prosecutor’s office, raising the prospect that the result will be contested in the judiciary.
In its announcement, the council declared: “By the majority will of the people of Honduras, expressed sovereignly at the polls, the full council of the CNE declares Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah constitutional president of the Republic of Honduras for the presidential term starting 27 January 2026 and ending on 27 January 2030.”
The proclamation before the end of the review was the most recent in a string of disputes that marked the Central American country’s presidential race, beginning with what many saw as open interference by the US president.
Days before the election, Trump publicly backed Asfura, said the US would support the next government only if he won, and criticized the other main contenders, labeling them socialists or allies of Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro.
On the night of the election, the US president also granted clemency for the ex-leader of Honduras and Asfura ally Juan Orlando Hernández, who had been sentenced 45 years in prison for reportedly creating “a major drug trafficking route to the United States”.
The American top diplomat, Marco Rubio, offered congratulations to Asfura on a public platform. “The people of Honduras have spoken: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ incoming leader,” stated Rubio. “The United States extends its congratulations to president-elect Asfura and looks forward to working with his administration to promote prosperity and security in our hemisphere.”
