Former US President-Endorsed Candidate Asfura Declared New President of the Central American Nation

Donald Trump-backed hopeful Nasry “Tito” Asfura was announced as the winner of Honduras’s race for the presidency after a vote count that extended for almost a month and was marred by claims of irregularities and criticism of interference by the US president.

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

The election authority proclaimed a winner before completing the examination of all tally sheets under a “extraordinary review” launched last week to recount votes marked as “irregular”. The decision was decried by unsuccessful contenders and lamented by the OAS, which deployed an observation mission to the poll held on 30 November.

Asfura has already declared himself president-elect. “Honduras, we now have the formal proclamation from the CNE [electoral council]. I recognise the great work undertaken by the councillors and the whole staff that ran the election. My fellow citizens: I am prepared to lead. I will not fail you. God bless Honduras,” he wrote.

Nasralla declined to accept defeat and posted a number of messages claiming manipulation in the tallying procedure, including “tampering with official records”, asserting that “the data from the original tally sheets were altered”.

The electoral council 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 nominee came in third place. Asfura’s victory was announced only by the first two councillors.

The member associated with the president’s party refused to recognise the result, alleged that an “stolen election” was under way and lodged a legal challenge with the attorney general, raising the prospect that the result will be challenged in the judiciary.

In its announcement, the council declared: “By the sovereign choice of the people of Honduras, expressed sovereignly at the polls, the full council of the CNE proclaims Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah constitutional president of the Republic of Honduras for the presidential term beginning on 27 January 2026 and ending on 27 January 2030.”

The declaration prior to the conclusion of the recount was the latest in a series 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.

Shortly prior to the election, Trump openly endorsed Asfura, said the US would support the next government only if he won, and attacked the other leading candidates, labeling them communists or allies of Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro.

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

The American top diplomat, Marco Rubio, congratulated Asfura on social media. “The citizens of Honduras have spoken: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ next president,” stated Rubio. “The United States extends its congratulations to president-elect Asfura and looks forward to working with his government to promote economic growth and safety in our hemisphere.”