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

Former President Trump-endorsed candidate Nasry “Tito” Asfura was announced as the victor of Honduras’s race for the presidency after a ballot tally that dragged on for nearly four weeks and was marred by claims of irregularities and criticism of meddling from the American leader.

The conservative Asfura, 67, a construction magnate and former mayor of the capital, Tegucigalpa, secured 40.27% of the vote, against 39.53% for the moderate right Salvador Nasralla, a difference of just 28,000 ballots.

The election authority declared a victor before completing the examination of all tally sheets under a “extraordinary review” launched last week to recount votes marked as “inconsistent”. The decision was criticised by defeated candidates and deplored by the OAS, which deployed an observation mission to the poll held on 30 November.

Asfura has proclaimed himself as the elected president. “Honduras, we now have the formal proclamation from the CNE [supreme electoral tribunal]. I acknowledge the tremendous effort carried out by the councillors 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 published a number of messages claiming manipulation in the counting process, 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 affiliated with Asfura’s party, one with Nasralla’s, and one with the party of the leftist president, Xiomara Castro, whose nominee came in third place. Asfura’s win was announced only by the first two councillors.

The member associated with the president’s party refused to recognise the outcome, alleged that an “electoral coup” was taking place and filed a legal challenge with the attorney general, raising the prospect that the outcome will be challenged in the judiciary.

In its statement, the council said: “By the sovereign choice of the Honduran people, expressed sovereignly at the polls, the full council 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 proclamation before the end of the recount was the latest in a string of disputes that characterized the Central American country’s election campaign, beginning with what many saw as open interference by the US president.

Shortly prior to the election, Trump openly endorsed Asfura, said the US would back the next government only if he won, and criticized the other leading candidates, labeling them communists or associates 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 given 45 years in prison for reportedly establishing “a major drug trafficking route to the United States”.

The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, offered congratulations to Asfura on social media. “The citizens of Honduras have made their choice: Nasry Asfura is Honduras’ next president,” stated Rubio. “The United States extends its congratulations to the elected president Asfura and anticipates collaborating with his administration to promote economic growth and security in our region.”