The conservative candidate was proclaimed this Wednesday president-elect of Honduras, which submerged the Central American country. The declaration has not been without controversy due to the division of the three members of the National Electoral Council (CNE), who did not reach a unanimous agreement to name a winner of . With 99.93% of the ballots counted, Asfura, from the National Party and , wins 40.2% of the votes. In second place is the liberal Salvador Nasralla, with 39.5% of the support. Asfura has reacted to the declaration with thanks to the CNE: “I recognize the great work carried out by the counselors and the entire team that carried out the elections. Honduras: I am prepared to govern. I am not going to fail you,” he wrote in his X profile, where he calls himself ‘Daddy on order’. In a desperate attempt to achieve victory, Nasralla wrote a message to Trump on Tuesday accusing his opponent of being “complicit in silencing” votes that, he claimed, favored him.
The proclamation of the winner has been marked by the , which is made up of representatives of the three political parties participating in the contest: the ruling Libre, the National Party and the Liberal Party, the latter two are the political clans that have governed Honduras in a long two-party system, with the current exception of Libre and the Government of the president. Marlon Ochoa, advisor under the umbrella of Libre, repudiated the decision of his other colleagues – the liberal Ana Paola Hall, president of the organization, and the conservative Cossette López – to end the uncertainty about the winner of the elections.
“Right now, I am out of the Plenary session.” [del CNE] and I am going to the Public Ministry to file a complaint against the Electoral coup d’état that is being carried out,” Ochoa denounced on his social networks. López, for his part, warned of an “attack” by the ruling party for deciding to name a winner. “There are currently no conditions for any other entity to declare elections other than the CNE, but evidently, they want to force other scenarios. Let’s protect the material, and be aware of our own process. We are attacked for complying with Honduras. “We will move forward,” he said.
The tension has been maintained until the last moment and under which they have demanded the end of the so-called special scrutiny, the vote-by-vote recount of 2,972 electoral records that according to the political parties present inconsistencies and whose result has defined the winner. The process, which should have started on December 13, suffered delays due to obstacles imposed by political parties, unable to register their representatives in the count and marked by slowness, constant interruptions and “technical problems.” This added to the protest of hundreds of Libre supporters, encouraged by party leaders who denounce massive fraud in the election.
The United States and through the Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs warned of “consequences” if the electoral authorities did not complete the process and name a winner. “It is deeply worrying to see how certain parties and candidates continue to disrupt the Honduran electoral process. It is imperative that those participating fulfill their obligations in a timely manner so that the CNE can finalize the official results. Anyone who obstructs or attempts to delay the work of the CNE will face consequences. The Honduran people have waited too long. They deserve a timely, transparent and credible process,” he warned.
A desperate Nasralla presented on Wednesday morning, before the official proclamation was known, images of his supporters dancing and celebrating a supposed victory. “The National Party is sure that it won the November 30 elections, that is why the fight continues today, December 24, ready to review the almost 10,000 ballot boxes in which there are more than 2 million votes that the CNE councilors do not want to review, which is a violation of the law. This is a serious betrayal of the popular will. That is why they have not issued a final declaration consummating the murder of Honduras’ democracy,” Nasralla denounced.
