Former US President-Endorsed Contender Asfura Proclaimed New Head of State of the Central American Nation
Former President Trump-endorsed candidate Nasry “Tito” Asfura has been declared the winner of Honduras’s presidential election following a vote count that extended for almost a month and was overshadowed by claims of irregularities and criticism of meddling from the US president.
The rightwing Asfura, 67, a construction magnate and ex-mayor of the capital, 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 “extraordinary review” launched last week to re-tally votes flagged as “irregular”. The move was criticised by unsuccessful contenders and lamented by the OAS, which sent an observation mission to the election held on 30 November.
Asfura has proclaimed himself as president-elect. “Honduras, we now have the formal proclamation from the CNE [supreme electoral tribunal]. I recognise the tremendous effort undertaken by the members and the whole staff that ran the election. My fellow citizens: I am prepared to lead. I will not fail you. God bless Honduras,” he wrote.
Nasralla declined to accept defeat and posted a number of messages claiming manipulation in the counting process, including “tampering with official records”, claiming that “the figures from the original tally sheets were altered”.
The election board 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 finished third. Asfura’s win was declared only by the first two councillors.
The representative linked to the president’s party refused to recognise the outcome, alleged that an “stolen election” was taking place and filed a complaint with the attorney general, opening the possibility 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 ballot box, the plenary session of the CNE proclaims 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 declaration prior to the conclusion of the recount was the most recent in a series of disputes that characterized the Central American country’s election campaign, starting with what many saw as blatant meddling by the US president.
Days before the vote, Trump publicly backed Asfura, said the US would support the next government only if he won, and attacked the other main contenders, labeling them communists 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 establishing “a cocaine superhighway to the United States”.
The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, offered congratulations to Asfura on a public platform. “The citizens of Honduras have spoken: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ incoming leader,” said Rubio. “The United States extends its congratulations to president-elect Asfura and anticipates collaborating with his administration to promote economic growth and security in our region.”