Former US President-Endorsed Candidate Asfura Proclaimed Incoming President of Honduras

Former President Trump-endorsed hopeful Nasry “Tito” Asfura has been declared the winner of Honduras’s race for the presidency following a vote count that dragged on for almost a month and was overshadowed by claims of irregularities and accusations of meddling from the US president.

The rightwing Asfura, 67, a building tycoon and ex-mayor of the capital, Tegucigalpa, obtained 40.27% of the vote, against 39.53% for the centre-right Salvador Nasralla, a difference of just 28,000 ballots.

The election authority declared a victor prior to finishing the review of all tally sheets under a “extraordinary review” launched last week to recount votes flagged as “irregular”. The decision was criticised by defeated candidates and lamented by the OAS, which deployed an observation mission 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 [supreme electoral tribunal]. I acknowledge the tremendous effort carried out by the members and the whole staff that ran the election. Honduras: I am ready to govern. I will not fail you. God bless Honduras,” he wrote.

Nasralla declined to accept defeat and posted a number of messages alleging fraud in the tallying procedure, including “tampering with official records”, claiming that “the figures from the initial count sheets were changed”.

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 leftist president, Xiomara Castro, whose candidate came in third place. Asfura’s win was declared only by the first two councillors.

The representative linked to the president’s party refused to recognise the result, alleged that an “stolen election” was under way and filed a complaint with the public prosecutor’s office, opening the possibility that the result will be challenged in court.

In its statement, the council said: “By the sovereign choice of the Honduran people, expressed sovereignly at the polls, the plenary session 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 concluding on 27 January 2030.”

The proclamation before the end of the review was the latest in a series of controversies that marked the Central American country’s election campaign, starting with what many saw as blatant meddling 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 was victorious, 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 former Honduran president and Asfura supporter Juan Orlando Hernández, who had been sentenced 45 years in prison for reportedly creating “a major drug trafficking route to the United States”.

The American top diplomat, Marco Rubio, offered congratulations to Asfura on a public platform. “The people of Honduras have spoken: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ next president,” said Rubio. “The United States congratulates the elected president Asfura and looks forward to collaborating with his government to promote prosperity and safety in our region.”