Former US President-Endorsed Candidate Asfura Proclaimed Incoming President of Honduras

Former President Trump-endorsed candidate Nasry “Tito” Asfura has been declared the victor of Honduras’s presidential election following a ballot tally that dragged on for almost a month and was clouded by claims of irregularities and criticism of meddling from the American leader.

The rightwing Asfura, 67, a building tycoon and ex-mayor of the capital city, Tegucigalpa, obtained 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 proclaimed a winner before completing the examination of all vote records under a “extraordinary review” initiated last week to recount votes flagged as “irregular”. The decision was decried by defeated candidates and deplored by the Organization of American States, which sent an monitoring team to the election held on 30 November.

Asfura has proclaimed himself as president-elect. “Honduras, we now have the official declaration from the CNE [electoral council]. I acknowledge the great work 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 wrote.

Nasralla refused to concede and published a number of messages alleging fraud in the tallying procedure, including “tampering with official records”, asserting 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 progressive president, Xiomara Castro, whose nominee finished third. Asfura’s win was announced only by the initial pair of councillors.

The representative linked to the president’s party refused to recognise the outcome, claimed that an “electoral coup” was under way and lodged a complaint with the public prosecutor’s office, opening the possibility that the result will be contested in court.

In its announcement, the council declared: “By the majority will of the people of Honduras, expressed freely 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 concluding on 27 January 2030.”

The proclamation prior to the conclusion of the recount was the latest in a string of controversies that characterized the Central American country’s presidential race, starting with what many saw as blatant meddling by the American head of state.

Days before the election, Trump publicly backed Asfura, stated the US would back the next government only if he won, and criticized the other main contenders, labeling them communists or associates of Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro.

On the eve of the election, the American leader also announced a pardon for the former Honduran president and Asfura ally 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, offered congratulations to Asfura on a public platform. “The citizens of Honduras have spoken: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ next president,” stated Rubio. “The United States congratulates the elected president Asfura and looks forward to working with his administration to promote prosperity and safety in our region.”