Former US President-Endorsed Contender Asfura Proclaimed Incoming Head of State of Honduras
Former President Trump-endorsed candidate Nasry “Tito” Asfura was proclaimed the victor of Honduras’s race for the presidency following a vote count that dragged on for almost a month and was overshadowed by claims of irregularities and criticism of interference by the American leader.
The rightwing Asfura, 67, a building tycoon and former mayor of the capital, Tegucigalpa, secured 40.27% of the vote, against 39.53% for the moderate right Salvador Nasralla, a margin of just 28,000 votes.
The electoral council declared a victor prior to finishing the examination of all tally sheets under a “extraordinary review” launched last week to recount votes flagged as “irregular”. The decision was criticised by defeated candidates and deplored by the Organization of American States, which deployed an monitoring team to the poll held on 30 November.
Asfura has proclaimed himself as the elected president. “The nation, we now have the official declaration from the CNE [electoral council]. I recognise the great work undertaken by the councillors and the whole staff that ran the election. Honduras: I am ready to govern. I will not fail you. God bless Honduras,” he stated.
Nasralla declined to accept defeat and published a series of statements alleging fraud in the tallying procedure, including “tampering with official records”, claiming that “the data from the initial count sheets were altered”.
The election board is made up of three members: one aligned with Asfura’s party, one with Nasralla’s, and one with the party of the progressive president, Xiomara Castro, whose nominee finished third. Asfura’s win was declared only by the first two councillors.
The member linked to the president’s party refused to recognise the outcome, alleged that an “electoral coup” was taking place and lodged a complaint with the attorney general, raising the prospect that the outcome will be challenged in the judiciary.
In its statement, the council said: “By the sovereign choice of the people of Honduras, expressed freely at the polls, the full council of the CNE proclaims Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah constitutional president of the Republic of Honduras for the four-year 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 series of disputes that marked the Central American country’s presidential race, starting with what many saw as blatant meddling by the US president.
Shortly prior to the vote, Trump openly endorsed Asfura, stated the US would support the next government only if he was victorious, and criticized 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 granted clemency for the former Honduran president and Asfura supporter Juan Orlando Hernández, who had been given 45 years in prison for reportedly establishing “a major drug trafficking route to the United States”.
The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, congratulated Asfura on social media. “The people of Honduras have made their choice: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ next president,” said Rubio. “The United States extends its congratulations to the elected president Asfura and looks forward to collaborating with his government to promote economic growth and safety in our hemisphere.”
