🔗 Share this article

The moderate candidate in Honduras's tightly contested presidential election, Salvador Nasralla, has accused "unscrupulous individuals" of tampering with the vote count in the Central American nation.

Over a week after the election, the election authority has yet to announce a winner, but the latest results suggest that Nasry "Tito" Asfura, the conservative candidate endorsed by US President Donald Trump, holds a slim advantage.

Nasralla, who had been ahead in the initial stages before dropping into second place, declared on social media: "This is theft."

The left-wing candidate trailing in third, Rixi Moncada, has demanded the vote to be invalidated and accused Trump of the election.

Close Results and Growing Frustration

With 98.77% of votes counted, Asfura had 40.53% of the vote, leading Nasralla with under forty percent and Moncada with 19.32%, per the election body's update.

Frustration has been growing over the last week as the counting was repeatedly halted, sometimes for extended periods.

Representatives of the CNE blamed "system glitches."

They have also cautioned that thousands of voting records with "irregularities" still need to be reviewed.

Trump's Backing and Controversial Pardon

The period preceding the election was overshadowed by Trump's endorsement of Nasry "Tito" Asfura.

Shortly before the vote, Trump threw his weight behind the former mayor of Tegucigalpa, saying that "Tito and I can work together to fight the drug traffickers."

"Our support will be strong should Asfura win, but the United States will not be wasting resources, because a wrong Leader can only bring catastrophic results," Trump added.

In a surprise move two days before the election, Trump also pardoned jailed former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández, who stems from the same party as Asfura.

Hernández was serving a 45-year prison sentence in the US for conspiring to import cocaine.

His clemency and freedom has shocked Honduran authorities, who issued an international arrest warrant for Hernández, who is still in the US.

Rising Tensions and Claims of Meddling

Meanwhile, the situation has grown more tense as the lead in the vote count changed a number of times.

Trump claimed the CNE of "trying to change" the outcome when Nasralla overtook Asfura early on.

"They will face severe consequences," the US president said without offering proof of any fraud.

Since the moment the Trump-endorsed Asfura moved in the lead, it has been his two rivals alleging misconduct.

Rixi Moncada's Libre party called for the "complete cancellation" of the elections.

It also urged its supporters to protest publicly against what it called "meddling and pressure of the President of the United States."

Nasralla pointed the finger at unnamed "corrupt ones" for "holding up the counting process."

Under Honduran law, the CNE has until 30 December to announce a victor.