Honduras held its presidential election on September 2nd, with center-right opposition Liberal Party (PL) candidate Naslaa narrowly defeating right-wing opposition National Party (PN) candidate Asfra, who is supported by US President Trump. Both candidates had expressed a willingness to restore diplomatic relations with Taiwan before the election.
Honduran media, citing data from the National Electoral Commission (CNE), reported that 66.5% of the vote count is currently complete. Salvador Nasralla received 844,432 votes, or 40.13%, while Nasry Asfura trailed closely behind with 835,544 votes, or 39.71%.
Trump supports Asfra, accuses Honduras of election fraud.
Reuters reported that the National Election Commission stated in a statement on the 2nd that the initial rapid vote counting system was riddled with problems, causing issues with the webpage that was supposed to update the results in real time. The webpage was inaccessible for most of the day on the 1st, further escalating the already tense atmosphere of the fiercely contested election, which was already rife with allegations of potential fraud ahead of the official vote on November 30th.
The election agency stated that it will release vote count information directly to the media and political parties to ensure that the public can understand the election results.
As vote counting continues, prison rosters show that Juan Orlando Hernandez, the former president of the National Party and president of Honduras, was released from a US prison on September 1. He had been sentenced to 45 years in prison for drug trafficking and illegal possession of firearms. Trump had urged Honduran voters to vote for Asfra and said he would pardon Hernandez; a White House official also confirmed on September 2 that Trump had pardoned Hernandez.
However, on November 1, Trump claimed without any evidence that Honduras was"trying to change the outcome of the presidential election" and that "if they really do that, the consequences will be unimaginable! The people of Honduras voted by an overwhelming majority on November 30."
In the lead-up to the election, Trump repeatedly expressed his support for Asifra and said he was willing to work with Asifra to combat drug trafficking.
According to the Organization of American States (OAS), which observed the election, national participation was high and the overall process was peaceful and orderly. In a statement on October 1st, the organization said,"Aside from a few isolated incidents in a few towns, the voting process proceeded largely normally."
Outgoing President Xiomara Castro shared a message from her husband, former President Manuel Zelaya, on social media platform X. Zelaya fiercely criticized Trump for interfering in the election and vowed that the Honduran people would defend democracy:"We who fight for freedom have stood up. We are patriots and will never yield."
