Trump-Backed Contender Asfura Declared Incoming President of Honduras

Former President Trump-endorsed hopeful Nasry “Tito” Asfura has been declared the victor of Honduras’s presidential election after a ballot tally that dragged on for nearly four weeks and was clouded by claims of irregularities and criticism of interference by the American leader.

The conservative Asfura, 67, a building tycoon and ex-mayor of the capital city, Tegucigalpa, secured 40.27% of the vote, against 39.53% for the moderate right Salvador Nasralla, a difference of just 28,000 votes.

The election authority proclaimed a winner prior to finishing the review of all tally sheets under a “extraordinary review” initiated last week to re-tally votes flagged as “inconsistent”. The decision was criticised by defeated candidates and lamented by the Organization of American States, which sent an monitoring team to the poll held on 30 November.

Asfura has proclaimed himself as the elected president. “Honduras, we now have the formal proclamation from the CNE [electoral council]. I recognise the tremendous effort undertaken by the councillors and the entire team 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 series of statements claiming manipulation in the tallying procedure, including “tampering with official records”, asserting that “the data from the original tally sheets were changed”.

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 candidate finished third. Asfura’s win was declared only by the initial pair of councillors.

The representative linked to the president’s party rejected the outcome, claimed that an “stolen election” was taking place and filed a legal challenge with the public prosecutor’s office, raising the prospect that the outcome will be contested in court.

In its statement, the council declared: “By the sovereign choice of the Honduran people, expressed freely at the ballot box, the full council of the CNE declares Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah constitutional president of the Republic of Honduras for the presidential term beginning on 27 January 2026 and concluding on 27 January 2030.”

The proclamation before the end of the review was the most recent in a series of controversies that marked the Central American country’s election campaign, starting with what many saw as open interference by the American head of state.

Days before the vote, Trump publicly backed Asfura, stated the US would support the next government only if he was victorious, and criticized the other main contenders, labeling them communists or associates of Venezuela’s authoritarian leader, Nicolás Maduro.

On the night of the election, the US president also granted clemency for the ex-leader of Honduras and Asfura supporter Juan Orlando Hernández, who had been sentenced 45 years in prison for allegedly establishing “a major drug trafficking route to the United States”.

The American top diplomat, 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 looks forward to working with his administration to promote economic growth and safety in our hemisphere.”