Trump-Backed Contender Asfura Proclaimed New Head of State of Honduras
Donald Trump-backed candidate Nasry “Tito” Asfura has been declared the winner of Honduras’s race for the presidency after a vote count that dragged on for nearly four weeks and was clouded by claims of irregularities and criticism of interference by the American leader.
The rightwing Asfura, 67, a construction magnate and former mayor of the capital, Tegucigalpa, secured 40.27% of the vote, against 39.53% for the centre-right Salvador Nasralla, a margin of just 28,000 votes.
The electoral council proclaimed a winner prior to finishing the examination of all tally sheets under a “special scrutiny” initiated last week to re-tally votes marked as “irregular”. The move was criticised by unsuccessful contenders and lamented by the Organization of American States, which sent an observation mission to the poll held on 30 November.
Asfura has already declared himself president-elect. “Honduras, we now have the official declaration from the CNE [electoral council]. I recognise the tremendous effort undertaken by the councillors and the whole staff that administered the election. My fellow citizens: I am prepared to lead. I will not let you down. God bless Honduras,” he stated.
Nasralla refused to concede and posted a number of messages alleging fraud in the tallying procedure, including “forgery of public documents”, asserting that “the figures from the initial count sheets were altered”.
The election board is composed of three members: one aligned with Asfura’s party, one with Nasralla’s, and one with the party of the leftist president, Xiomara Castro, whose candidate came in third place. Asfura’s victory was declared only by the initial pair of councillors.
The member linked to the president’s party rejected the result, claimed that an “electoral coup” was under way and filed a legal challenge with the public prosecutor’s office, raising the prospect that the result will be contested in court.
In its statement, the council said: “By the majority will of the Honduran people, expressed sovereignly at the ballot box, the full council of the CNE declares Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah legitimate president of the Republic of Honduras for the presidential term starting 27 January 2026 and ending on 27 January 2030.”
The proclamation before the end of the recount was the latest in a string of disputes that characterized the Central American country’s presidential race, beginning with what many saw as open interference by the American head of state.
Shortly prior to the vote, Trump publicly backed Asfura, said the US would support the next government only if he was victorious, and attacked the other leading candidates, labeling them communists or associates of Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro.
On the eve of the election, the US president also announced a pardon for the ex-leader of Honduras and Asfura supporter Juan Orlando Hernández, who had been given 45 years in prison for allegedly creating “a cocaine superhighway to the United States”.
The American top diplomat, Marco Rubio, congratulated Asfura on a public platform. “The citizens of Honduras have made their choice: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ incoming leader,” said Rubio. “The United States extends its congratulations to president-elect Asfura and anticipates working with his administration to promote economic growth and security in our hemisphere.”