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

Former President Trump-endorsed hopeful Nasry “Tito” Asfura was proclaimed the winner of Honduras’s presidential election following a ballot tally that extended for almost a month and was marred by claims of irregularities and criticism of meddling from the American leader.

The conservative Asfura, 67, a building tycoon and former mayor of the capital, Tegucigalpa, secured 40.27% of the vote, compared to 39.53% for the moderate right Salvador Nasralla, a difference of just 28,000 votes.

The electoral council declared a victor before completing the examination of all vote records under a “special scrutiny” initiated last week to recount votes marked as “inconsistent”. The move was decried by unsuccessful contenders and lamented by the Organization of American States, which sent an monitoring team to the poll held on 30 November.

Asfura has proclaimed himself as president-elect. “Honduras, we now have the official declaration from the CNE [supreme electoral tribunal]. I recognise the great work carried out by the members and the entire team that ran the election. My fellow citizens: I am prepared to lead. I will not fail you. God bless Honduras,” he stated.

Nasralla declined to accept defeat and posted a series of statements claiming manipulation in the counting process, including “forgery of public documents”, asserting that “the data from the initial count sheets were changed”.

The election board is composed of three councillors: one affiliated with Asfura’s party, one with Nasralla’s, and one with the party of the progressive president, Xiomara Castro, whose nominee came in third place. Asfura’s victory was announced only by the initial pair of councillors.

The representative linked to the president’s party rejected the outcome, alleged that an “electoral coup” was taking place and lodged a legal challenge with the attorney general, opening the possibility that the result will be challenged in the judiciary.

In its announcement, the council declared: “By the majority will of the Honduran people, expressed sovereignly at the polls, the plenary session of the CNE declares Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah constitutional president of the Republic of Honduras for the four-year term starting 27 January 2026 and ending on 27 January 2030.”

The declaration prior to the conclusion of the recount was the most recent in a string of controversies that marked the Central American country’s election campaign, beginning with what many saw as blatant meddling by the American head of state.

Shortly prior to the election, Trump openly endorsed Asfura, stated the US would support the next government only if he won, and attacked the other leading candidates, calling them socialists or allies of Venezuela’s authoritarian leader, Nicolás Maduro.

On the night of the election, the US president also granted clemency 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 spoken: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ incoming leader,” said Rubio. “The United States congratulates president-elect Asfura and anticipates collaborating with his government to advance prosperity and security in our region.”