Trump-Backed Contender Asfura Declared New President of the Central American Nation

Donald Trump-backed candidate Nasry “Tito” Asfura was proclaimed the victor of Honduras’s presidential election after a vote count that extended for almost a month and was overshadowed by claims of irregularities and accusations of meddling from the US president.

The conservative Asfura, 67, a building tycoon and ex-mayor of the capital, Tegucigalpa, secured 40.27% of the vote, against 39.53% for the centre-right Salvador Nasralla, a difference 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 re-tally votes flagged as “inconsistent”. The move was criticised by unsuccessful contenders and deplored 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 official declaration from the CNE [supreme electoral tribunal]. I recognise the tremendous effort undertaken by the members and the whole staff that ran the election. Honduras: I am prepared to lead. I will not let you down. God bless Honduras,” he wrote.

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

The electoral council is made up 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 finished third. Asfura’s victory was declared only by the first two councillors.

The representative associated with the president’s party rejected the result, claimed that an “stolen election” was taking place and filed a legal challenge with the public prosecutor’s office, opening the possibility that the outcome will be challenged in court.

In its announcement, the council said: “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 concluding on 27 January 2030.”

The declaration prior to the conclusion of the review was the latest in a series of disputes that marked the Central American country’s presidential race, starting with what many saw as blatant meddling by the US president.

Days before the election, Trump publicly backed Asfura, stated the US would support the next government only if he won, and criticized the other leading candidates, calling them communists or allies of Venezuela’s authoritarian leader, Nicolás Maduro.

On the eve of the election, the American leader also granted clemency for the ex-leader of Honduras and Asfura ally Juan Orlando Hernández, who had been given 45 years in prison for reportedly establishing “a cocaine superhighway to the United States”.

The American top diplomat, Marco Rubio, offered congratulations to 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 anticipates collaborating with his administration to promote prosperity and safety in our hemisphere.”