Honduran Candidate Alleges Election Has Been 'Stolen'
The centrist candidate in Honduras's tightly contested presidential election, Salvador Nasralla, has accused "corrupt people" of manipulating the vote count in the Central American nation.
Over a week after the election, the electoral council has still not declared a winner, but the latest results suggest that Nasry "Tito" Asfura, the right-wing contender backed by US President Donald Trump, holds a slim advantage.
Nasralla, who had been ahead in the initial stages before falling to second place, stated on social media: "They have stolen it."
The left-wing candidate placed in third, Rixi Moncada, has called for the vote to be invalidated and accused Trump of the election.
Close Results and Growing Unrest
With 98.77% of votes counted, Asfura had 40.53% of the vote, ahead of Nasralla with under forty percent and Moncada with 19.32%, according to the National Electoral Council's (CNE) update.
Patience has worn thin over the last week as the counting stalled several times, sometimes for days on end.
Officials from the CNE attributed the delays to "system glitches."
They have also cautioned that numerous voting records with "inconsistencies" still need to be reviewed.
Trump's Backing and Surprise Pardon
The run-up to the election was dominated by Trump's endorsement of Nasry "Tito" Asfura.
Shortly before the vote, Trump threw his weight behind the former mayor of Tegucigalpa, saying that "We can work together to fight the drug traffickers."
"We will be very supportive should Asfura win, but we will not be wasting resources, because a poor choice can only bring catastrophic results," Trump added.
In a surprise move two days before the election, Trump also granted clemency to jailed former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández, who stems from the same party as Asfura.
Hernández was in the midst of a 45-year prison sentence in the US for conspiring to import cocaine.
His pardon and subsequent release has shocked Honduran authorities, who issued an international arrest warrant for Hernández, who is still in the US.
Mounting Tensions and Allegations of Meddling
Meanwhile, tension has been rising 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.
"If they do, there will be hell to pay," the US president said without providing evidence of any fraud.
Ever since the Trump-endorsed Asfura moved in the lead, it has been his two rivals crying foul.
Rixi Moncada's Libre party called for the "complete cancellation" of the elections.
It also called on its supporters to take to the streets against what it called "the interference and coercion of the President of the United States."
Nasralla pointed the finger at unnamed "bad actors" for "holding up the counting process."
According to the nation's regulations, the CNE has until 30 December to declare a winner.
