Former US President-Endorsed Candidate Asfura Proclaimed New Head of State of Honduras
Former President Trump-endorsed 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 clouded by claims of irregularities and accusations of meddling from the US president.
The rightwing Asfura, 67, a building tycoon and former mayor of the capital city, Tegucigalpa, obtained 40.27% of the vote, against 39.53% for the centre-right Salvador Nasralla, a difference of just 28,000 votes.
The electoral council proclaimed a winner before completing the examination of all vote records under a “special scrutiny” launched last week to re-tally votes flagged as “irregular”. The decision was decried by unsuccessful contenders and deplored by the OAS, which deployed an observation mission to the election held on 30 November.
Asfura has already declared himself president-elect. “The nation, we now have the official declaration from the CNE [electoral council]. I acknowledge the tremendous effort carried out by the councillors and the entire team that ran the election. Honduras: I am prepared to lead. I will not fail you. God bless Honduras,” he stated.
Nasralla refused to concede and posted a series of statements alleging fraud in the counting process, including “tampering with official records”, claiming that “the data from the initial count sheets were changed”.
The election board is composed of three councillors: one affiliated with Asfura’s party, one with Nasralla’s, and one with the party of the progressive president, Xiomara Castro, whose nominee came in third place. Asfura’s victory was declared only by the first two councillors.
The member associated with the president’s party rejected the result, alleged that an “stolen election” was taking place and lodged a legal challenge with the attorney general, opening the possibility that the result will be challenged in court.
In its statement, the council declared: “By the sovereign choice of the Honduran people, expressed sovereignly at the ballot box, the plenary session of the CNE proclaims Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah constitutional president of the Republic of Honduras for the presidential term beginning on 27 January 2026 and ending on 27 January 2030.”
The declaration prior to the conclusion of the recount was the most recent in a string 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 publicly backed Asfura, stated the US would back the next government only if he won, and criticized the other leading candidates, labeling them communists or allies of Venezuela’s authoritarian leader, Nicolás Maduro.
On the night of the election, the American leader also granted clemency for the ex-leader of Honduras and Asfura ally Juan Orlando Hernández, who had been given 45 years in prison for reportedly establishing “a cocaine superhighway to the United States”.
The American top diplomat, Marco Rubio, offered congratulations to Asfura on a public platform. “The citizens of Honduras have made their choice: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ next president,” stated Rubio. “The United States congratulates the elected president Asfura and anticipates collaborating with his administration to promote prosperity and safety in our region.”
