Former US President-Endorsed Candidate Asfura Proclaimed Incoming Head of State of the Central American Nation

Former President Trump-endorsed hopeful Nasry “Tito” Asfura was proclaimed the victor of Honduras’s race for the presidency following a ballot tally that extended for nearly four weeks and was overshadowed by fraud allegations and accusations of meddling from the American leader.

The conservative Asfura, 67, a construction magnate and ex-mayor of the capital city, Tegucigalpa, obtained 40.27% of the vote, compared to 39.53% for the moderate right Salvador Nasralla, a margin of just 28,000 ballots.

The election authority proclaimed a winner prior to finishing the review of all vote records under a “special scrutiny” launched last week to recount votes flagged as “irregular”. The decision was criticised by defeated candidates and deplored by the OAS, which deployed an observation mission to the poll held on 30 November.

Asfura has already declared himself the elected president. “Honduras, we now have the formal proclamation from the CNE [supreme electoral tribunal]. I acknowledge the great work carried out by the members and the whole staff that administered the election. My fellow citizens: I am ready to govern. I will not let you down. God bless Honduras,” he stated.

Nasralla declined to accept defeat and published a series of statements claiming manipulation in the tallying procedure, including “tampering with official records”, asserting that “the data from the initial count sheets were changed”.

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 progressive president, Xiomara Castro, whose candidate 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 “stolen election” was taking place and lodged a legal challenge with the public prosecutor’s office, raising the prospect that the outcome will be contested in court.

In its announcement, the council declared: “By the sovereign choice of the people of Honduras, expressed freely at the ballot box, the plenary session of the CNE declares Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah constitutional president of the Republic of Honduras for the four-year term starting 27 January 2026 and ending on 27 January 2030.”

The declaration prior to the conclusion of the review was the most recent in a string of controversies that characterized the Central American country’s election campaign, beginning with what many saw as open interference by the American head of state.

Shortly prior to the election, Trump publicly backed Asfura, stated the US would support the next government only if he won, and criticized the other main contenders, labeling them socialists or allies of Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro.

On the night of the election, the American leader 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 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’ next president,” stated Rubio. “The United States extends its congratulations to the elected president Asfura and looks forward to working with his administration to advance economic growth and safety in our hemisphere.”