Trump-Backed Candidate Asfura Proclaimed New President of the Central American Nation
Former President Trump-endorsed hopeful Nasry “Tito” Asfura has been declared the winner of Honduras’s presidential election following a vote count that extended for nearly four weeks and was overshadowed by fraud allegations and criticism of meddling from the American leader.
The conservative Asfura, 67, a construction magnate and ex-mayor of the capital city, Tegucigalpa, secured 40.27% of the vote, compared to 39.53% for the centre-right Salvador Nasralla, a margin of just 28,000 votes.
The electoral council declared a victor prior to finishing the examination of all vote records under a “special scrutiny” launched last week to re-tally votes marked as “inconsistent”. The move was decried by unsuccessful contenders and lamented by the OAS, which deployed an observation mission to the election held on 30 November.
Asfura has already declared himself the elected president. “The nation, we now have the formal proclamation from the CNE [electoral council]. I acknowledge the great work undertaken by the members and the entire team that administered the election. My fellow citizens: I am prepared to lead. I will not fail you. God bless Honduras,” he wrote.
Nasralla refused to concede and published a series of statements claiming manipulation in the tallying procedure, including “tampering with official records”, claiming that “the data from the initial count sheets were altered”.
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 nominee came in third place. Asfura’s win was announced only by the initial pair of councillors.
The representative associated with the president’s party refused to recognise the outcome, alleged that an “electoral coup” was taking place and filed a legal challenge with the attorney general, opening the possibility that the result will be challenged in the judiciary.
In its statement, the council declared: “By the sovereign choice of the Honduran people, expressed freely at the polls, the plenary session of the CNE declares Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah constitutional 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 review was the most recent in a string of disputes that marked the Central American country’s presidential race, starting with what many saw as open interference by the US president.
Shortly prior to the vote, Trump publicly backed Asfura, stated the US would back the next government only if he won, and criticized the other leading candidates, calling them socialists or associates of Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro.
On the eve of the election, the American leader also announced a pardon 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, offered congratulations to Asfura on social media. “The citizens of Honduras have spoken: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ incoming leader,” stated Rubio. “The United States congratulates the elected president Asfura and looks forward to collaborating with his government to promote economic growth and safety in our region.”