Trump-Backed Candidate Asfura Proclaimed Incoming Head of State of the Central American Nation

Former President Trump-endorsed hopeful Nasry “Tito” Asfura has been declared the winner of Honduras’s race for the presidency after a ballot tally that dragged on for almost a month and was clouded by claims of irregularities and criticism of meddling from the US president.

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 prior to finishing the review of all tally sheets under a “special scrutiny” launched 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 poll held on 30 November.

Asfura has already declared himself the elected president. “The nation, we now have the formal proclamation from the CNE [supreme electoral tribunal]. I acknowledge the tremendous effort undertaken by the councillors and the entire team that administered the election. My fellow citizens: I am ready to govern. I will not fail you. God bless Honduras,” he stated.

Nasralla refused to concede and published a series of statements alleging fraud in the tallying procedure, including “tampering with official records”, claiming that “the figures from the initial count 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 declared only by the first two councillors.

The representative associated with the president’s party rejected the result, alleged that an “electoral coup” was taking place and lodged a complaint with the attorney general, opening the possibility that the result will be contested in the judiciary.

In its statement, the council declared: “By the majority will of the Honduran people, 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 four-year term beginning on 27 January 2026 and ending on 27 January 2030.”

The proclamation before the end 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 openly endorsed Asfura, stated the US would support the next government only if he was victorious, and attacked the other main contenders, labeling them socialists or associates of Venezuela’s authoritarian leader, Nicolás Maduro.

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

The US secretary of state, 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 congratulates president-elect Asfura and looks forward to collaborating with his government to advance prosperity and safety in our region.”