Trump-Backed Contender Asfura Declared New Head of State of Honduras
Donald Trump-backed candidate Nasry “Tito” Asfura has been declared the victor of Honduras’s race for the presidency after a vote count that extended for almost a month and was overshadowed by claims of irregularities and criticism of interference by the American leader.
The conservative Asfura, 67, a building tycoon and former mayor of the capital city, Tegucigalpa, secured 40.27% of the vote, compared to 39.53% for the centre-right Salvador Nasralla, a difference of just 28,000 votes.
The electoral council proclaimed a winner before completing the review of all tally sheets under a “extraordinary review” launched last week to re-tally votes flagged as “irregular”. The move was decried by unsuccessful contenders and lamented by the Organization of American States, which sent 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 [electoral council]. I acknowledge the great work undertaken by the members 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 published a number of messages alleging fraud in the counting process, including “tampering with official records”, asserting that “the data from the initial count sheets were changed”.
The electoral council is composed of three members: one affiliated with Asfura’s party, one with Nasralla’s, and one with the party of the leftist president, Xiomara Castro, whose candidate finished third. Asfura’s victory was declared only by the initial pair of councillors.
The representative linked to the president’s party refused to recognise the outcome, alleged that an “electoral coup” was under way and filed a legal challenge with the attorney general, opening the possibility that the outcome will be contested in the judiciary.
In its announcement, the council declared: “By the sovereign choice of the people of Honduras, expressed sovereignly at the polls, the full council of the CNE proclaims Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah legitimate president of the Republic of Honduras for the four-year term starting 27 January 2026 and concluding on 27 January 2030.”
The declaration prior to the conclusion of the recount was the most recent in a series of controversies that characterized the Central American country’s presidential race, starting with what many saw as open interference by the US president.
Shortly prior to the election, Trump openly endorsed Asfura, said the US would support the next government only if he was victorious, and attacked the other main contenders, labeling them communists or allies of Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro.
On the eve of the election, the American leader also granted clemency for the ex-leader of Honduras and Asfura supporter 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, congratulated Asfura on a public platform. “The people of Honduras have spoken: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ next president,” stated Rubio. “The United States extends its congratulations to president-elect Asfura and anticipates collaborating with his administration to promote prosperity and safety in our hemisphere.”
