Former US President-Endorsed Contender Asfura Declared Incoming Head of State of the Central American Nation

Donald Trump-backed candidate Nasry “Tito” Asfura has been declared the victor of Honduras’s presidential election following a vote count that extended for nearly four weeks and was overshadowed by fraud allegations and criticism of interference by the American leader.

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

The electoral council declared a victor prior to finishing the examination of all tally sheets under a “special scrutiny” initiated last week to recount votes flagged as “inconsistent”. The move was criticised by defeated candidates and lamented by the Organization of American States, which deployed an monitoring team to the poll held on 30 November.

Asfura has proclaimed himself as the elected president. “The nation, we now have the official declaration from the CNE [electoral council]. I acknowledge the tremendous effort 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 stated.

Nasralla refused to concede and posted a number of messages alleging fraud in the tallying procedure, including “forgery of public documents”, claiming that “the figures from the initial count sheets were altered”.

The election board is made up of three councillors: one aligned with Asfura’s party, one with Nasralla’s, and one with the party of the leftist president, Xiomara Castro, whose nominee finished third. Asfura’s win was declared only by the initial pair of councillors.

The member linked to the president’s party rejected the outcome, alleged that an “stolen election” was under way and lodged a legal challenge with the attorney general, opening the possibility that the result will be contested in court.

In its statement, the council declared: “By the sovereign choice of the Honduran people, expressed sovereignly 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 beginning on 27 January 2026 and concluding on 27 January 2030.”

The declaration prior to the conclusion of the review was the most recent in a string of disputes that characterized the Central American country’s presidential race, beginning with what many saw as blatant meddling by the US president.

Shortly prior to the election, Trump openly endorsed Asfura, said the US would support the next government only if he was victorious, and attacked the other leading candidates, calling them socialists or associates of Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro.

On the eve of the election, the US president also announced a pardon for the former Honduran president and Asfura supporter Juan Orlando Hernández, who had been given 45 years in prison for reportedly creating “a cocaine superhighway to the United States”.

The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, congratulated Asfura on a public platform. “The citizens of Honduras have spoken: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ incoming leader,” said Rubio. “The United States congratulates the elected president Asfura and anticipates working with his administration to advance prosperity and safety in our hemisphere.”