Nasry Asfura has been declared the winner of Honduras's presidential election, following weeks of delays caused by technical problems and allegations of fraud. He stated on X, "Honduras: I am ready to govern. I will not let you down." US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged all parties to respect the result to ensure a peaceful transition of authority.
Election Results and Disputes
According to the National Electoral Council (CNE), Nasry Asfura, the conservative National Party candidate, secured 40.3% of the vote. Salvador Nasralla of the centre-right Liberal Party received 39.5%.
The vote, held on November 30, experienced significant delays in tabulation. The CNE reported two technical outages, which electoral officials deemed "inexcusable." Ana Paola Hall, president of the CNE, attributed the delays to the private company responsible for tabulation, stating the firm conducted maintenance without warning or CNE consultation. This occurred shortly after the real-time results portal had crashed.
Due to the narrow vote margin and processing system issues, approximately 15% of the tally sheets required manual counting to determine the winner.
Reactions and Allegations
The delays led to tensions and protests across Honduras, with thousands of supporters of the governing Libre party demonstrating in Tegucigalpa, alleging electoral fraud.
Outgoing President Xiomara Castro had previously asserted an "electoral coup" was underway and claimed "interference." Former US President Donald Trump had endorsed Asfura, stating there would be "hell to pay" if Asfura's lead was overturned and threatening to withdraw US financial support if Asfura did not win. Trump also pardoned Juan Orlando Hernandez, a member of Asfura's National Party, who was serving a 45-year sentence in the US on drug and weapons charges. Xiomara Castro was constitutionally barred from seeking a second term.
Nine days after the vote, Nasralla accused "corrupt people" of manipulating the vote count and suggested Trump's comments had impacted his chances.
International Response
Following the announcement, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated the US anticipated working with the incoming administration to enhance bilateral and regional security cooperation, reduce illegal immigration to the United States, and strengthen economic ties.